Daddy Blues
by Valentine'sNinja
Summary: Who says that women are the only ones who suffer during pregnancy? Avalanche has gathered together and decide to recount the nine months of terror some of them suffered through. VincentYuffie, CloudTifa, TsengElena, and CidShera. Complete!
1. Baby Valentine

Hello everyone! Thanks for coming around to check the story! Just know that it's a baby fic, and it will revolve around the characters mentioned in the summary, but will mostly be from the mens POV during their women's pregnancy. This piece is mainly VincentYuffie, so be warned. I won't mention more because my AN is at the end of the chapter. Hope you enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own Final Fantasy VII or any of the characters used in this piece of fiction. I am making no money off of them!

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**Daddy Blues**

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**Baby Valentine**

………………………………

Blue eyes took in his companions in slight curiosity. They had all gathered together for an Avalanche picnic, and the women had washed their hands free of their responsibilities with the excuse of preparing lunch, drinks, and snacks. They were all sitting at a park on the outskirts of Edge, gathered around a small poker table that had been brought along and was now covered with cold beers and other drinks while they waited for the women to start cooking. Cid took a swig of his beer and scowled when tiny arms wrapped around his neck and squeezed.

"Let go, brat," he rasped out, but his arms curled around the small body of his baby girl. She looked at him with big blue eyes, near identical to his, and he had to smile at the sight of her blonde pigtails; the ones that Shera had become and expert at making. He had tried to do them himself once, suffice to say that he would never try it again. He looked at his companions and noticed that Valentine had been saddled with his own bundle of not-always-joy, but the little shrimp was sleeping peacefully in the arms of his father.

Next to him was Cloud, who was holding his two year old, and being forced to read a book about dinosaurs. Barret was off, trying to grab something to eat while the women nagged him, and Reeve was sitting with Red, the Turks Reno and Rude, and Rufus. What he found amusing was that the bald Turk was holding the newest addition to _their_ group. The baby Turk happened to be Elena and Tseng's kid, and the Turks in question were standing together, talking quietly.

Cid was amused at the fact that all the children of the group seemed to have mysterious colored eyes. Sydney, whom _Shera_ had decided to name, had blue eyes the color of the sky. Zack, Tifa and Cloud's kid, had also blue eyes, but his were more the color of the ocean. Rowan, Valentine junior, had the same ruby-garnet stare of his father. And Kimi, the tiny Turk, had eyes like green jewels. Each child had individual characteristics that made them—and yes he was biased—the most beautiful children on the planet. Now, a few years ago, he never would've allowed himself thoughts that made him all soft, but he was a dad now, and he loved his little pain-in-the-ass princess more than his own life. Aside from that, beer usually made him think too much. That was why he usually got drunk to the point of incoherence; so that he didn't have so many squishy thoughts, as Yuffie had pointed out once.

Vincent let out a sigh and looked at Cid as he took in all the children, and the fact that the men were willingly watching over them. He smirked to himself and looked down at the one-year-old in his arms. He was taking his nap for the afternoon, and Yuffie had brought the tiny tot over to him as soon as the boy had nodded off. His gloved hand moved through the child's silky black hair and watched as it fell back into place, much like Yuffie's.

"Going soft, eh Vince?" asked Cid, who still had the little blonde girl choking him around the neck.

Vincent grunted and looked at the girl, who was now pressing little kisses to Cid's cheek. "You shouldn't point your finger, Cid," was all he replied.

Cloud looked at him in amusement and pointed out the various colors the illustrator had used on the dinosaurs for his son. "I think to a point we've all gone soft. Children change life more than one could ever imagine," he said quietly.

Reeve walked over to sit with them and brought out a pack of cards. "Hey guys, want to play a hand of poker? Or are we too busy watching over your little bundles of joy?" he asked with an easy grin.

Barret walked over to join them too, and he looked peeved when his attempt at getting some food had been thwarted by Shera Highwind wielding a spatula at him threateningly. "What are we talkin' about now?" he asked.

"Fatherhood," Cloud replied.

"Going soft," Vincent added.

"Barret would know all about being soft," said Reeve, motioning to Marlene and Denzel, who were playing with Cait Sith and Red. She was now a twelve year old, while Denzel was fourteen.

"What?!" Barret snapped, glaring at the other man. "I did not go soft!"

The men all shared dubious glances but decided not to comment. Mostly because when Barret went off, there was no stopping his rants, and second, because he had a really big gun for an arm, even though it looked like a regular—made of metal—hand.

"Now that we're not being watched over the ladies, why don't you guys answer some questions for us who haven't been privy to the miracle of life?" asked Reeve slyly.

"What do you mean?" Cloud asked, handing little Zack a cookie once he set down his favorite book.

"The perv most likely wants to know where your brats were conceived," muttered Cid, who had finally eased Sydney's arms from around his neck, she was now peacefully drinking a bottle of juice while cradled in his arms.

Barret looked interested, but only for curiosity's sake. "Where _were_ they conceived?" he asked with raised brows.

"On the roof of Seventh Heaven," said Cloud with a shrug.

"On board the Shera," Vincent said evenly, causing Cid to choke on his beer, and Cloud, Barret, and Reeve's jaws to drop.

"You were doin' what on my ship?!" Cid yelled, grabbing the attention of the women and the Turks. He also successfully woke up Rowan, who promptly began to cry. Sydney echoed him and the respective mother's of the tots walked over in worry.

"What the hell are you screaming for?" Yuffie snapped, taking her son in hers arms and trying to sooth him with gentle coos.

"Cid, you know better than to yell around the children," said Shera in annoyance, taking her daughter back as well.

"Never mind my screaming! I was just told that your brat was conceived on my damn ship!" he said darkly.

"Is that what got your panties in a bunch?" the ninja asked, blowing him off and waving a hand dismissively.

"I don't know why that shocks you, Cid," Shera said calmly. "Sydney was conceived in a WRO ship hangar, _while_ Reeve was looking for you," she said smugly as he blushed.

The men and Yuffie had a chuckle at his expense and watched as the two women walked away. "You mean I was near by while it was happening?" Reeve asked, looking mildly disturbed.

"Shut it, Reeve," Cid snarled. "You go first, Valentine. Tells us of the miracle of life that involved the ninja. If it was anything like mine, I feel very sorry for you."

"The miracle of life?" asked Vincent faintly. He wasn't a man of many words, but he certainly had a lot to say about the nine long months he had spent watching Yuffie and their son grow. Yuffie was a natural-born drama queen, and her pregnancy had amplified that moment one hundred times more. He decided he would share the most vivid moments with his friends and team members the way he hadn't ever done before.

………………

_Vincent couldn't remember the last time he had been allowed enough space on his bed, in his room, in his home. It seemed as if a certain ninja had wormed her way into every aspect of his life, but he had gladly let her. He couldn't hold it against her. She was the light in his darkness, and he had desperately clung to her as offered him comfort and someone to trust in. He had been hesitant at first, since she had been so young and too full of life to burden her shoulders with his broken soul, but he had found that he had needed her desperately because she… she made him feel alive._

_After defeating Omega and putting Lucrecia's memory to rest, he had wanted to start his life over and hoped that it hadn't been too late. Just about a year later, at a party celebration for saving the world too many damned times—as Cid put it—on a late night, he had kissed Yuffie and thanked her for always being there for him. He had made her cry, but she had been smiling the entire time. There were times when he couldn't understand where the constant cheer came from, but he was happy that she was happy. Their first night together had been magical—as cliché as that sounded—and it had been on the night of his birthday, with candles lighting his room, and Yuffie's skin softer than anything he had ever touched. It seemed that after that night, he hadn't been able to keep his hands off of her, and Yuffie was only happy to comply._

_A few weeks before, they had gone to Cid and Shera's anniversary, and they had received the news that Mrs. Highwind was expecting her first baby, and was about three months along. They had celebrated the entire day and night, and the day after had gone back to Edge. During the flight, while Yuffie was slightly sedated to alleviate the air sickness, she had asked him if he had ever made love two-hundred thousand feet in the air._

_Well, he certainly had now, and she had been more than eager, even in her sedated state. Vincent stared at his ceiling and wondered where life with Yuffie would keep taking him. He didn't mind the unknown anymore, but Yuffie was like a puzzle to him, and every piece that clicked together only made him see that there were many more amazing pieces that made up who she was. Did that make any sense? He asked himself, frowning a little. He smirked faintly to himself as she mumbled something in her sleep and reached for him. He gladly wrapped her in his arms as she snuggled her face into his chest._

"_Vince?" she mumbled sleepily._

"_Yes, Yuffie?"_

"_I have a peanut butter and jelly craving," Yuffie said with a grin._

_Vincent pressed a kiss to the top of her head and made to sit up. "Let me move and I will make it for you," he said._

_Yuffie hugged him a little tighter. "I can wait. I just want to hug you, Vinnie-bear," she said, cracking open one eye to see his reaction. She was quite pleased when he frowned. "You don't like my new pet name?" she giggled and released him when he tried to kiss her. "Morning breath, Vince. Not you, but me," she said, moving off to sit up. Something roiled in her stomach and she made a face. "Ugh. What did we eat yesterday?" she asked, feeling nauseous._

"_You tried making some kind of stew," Vincent muttered before walking into the bathroom._

"_For your information, Vincent Valentine, it was beef stew," she replied in annoyance, feeling her stomach turn at the mention of meat. _

"_Whatever you say, Yuffie," Vincent called from the other room before the water started running._

_What the hell was wrong with her? She remembered Shera commenting about morning sickness and smirked, intending to shake the stoic Vincent Valentine._

_Yuffie stood and grimaced as her stomach did a nasty dance. "Heya, Vince? You don't think I'm pregnant, do you?" she asked innocently, watching him freeze while he was starting to brush his teeth. He stared at her through the reflection in the mirror and blinked. "I mean, I am feeling nauseous."_

_Vincent scrubbed at his teeth thoroughly and rinsed his mouth before turning to look at his ninja, who still had that innocent look on her face. "Are you late?" he asked seriously._

"_What?" she asked, a little smile on her face._

"_Are you late?" he asked again, accentuating the word._

_It was Yuffie's turn to blink. Shit. She hadn't even been serious, but now that he brought it up… she walked over to the calendar behind the bathroom door and made calculations. Double shit. "Heh, Vince, I was only kidding. My stomach was hurting, but it usually does when I invent something new in the kitchen," she said evasively, pushing him away from the sink so that she could wash her own face and teeth._

"_You are on time then? The last time we were together without protection was while Cid was bringing us back from Rocket Town," said Vincent, standing behind her and watching her as she brushed her teeth._

_Oh, she remembered that alright. She shook her head and rinsed her mouth before grabbing her brush and attacking her hair in near violence. "Vince, I was only kidding! I can't be pregnant. I mean, I don't mind, but I don't think either of us is ready for a baby—"_

"_Yuffie," he interrupted. "I'm over sixty years old. I wouldn't mind… unless… you do," he said quietly._

_The ninja stopped brushing. "Of course I wouldn't mind, but having a kid freaks me the hell out!" she said dramatically. "I'm not even twenty-one yet!"_

"_Are you telling me then, that there is no possibility that you can be pregnant yet?" Vincent asked seriously._

_Yuffie's eyes darted to the calendar and she hung her head. "Yeah. I think we need to stop by the drug store to pick up a test."_

_Nearly an hour later, they had returned from getting the test, and were sitting at the small dinner table near the living room. He had bought a small home in Edge, close by their friends, but in a place that was peaceful and had all the necessary places nearby. Currently, he was watching Yuffie as she stared at the pregnancy test, her knuckles were nearly white, but she hadn't even opened the box yet. "Yuffie…"_

_She jumped and looked at him in alarm. "Geez, Vince! I'm a little jumpy right now, stop freaking me out!" she exclaimed._

"_My apologies," he murmured, unclasping his cloak and pulling off his golden gauntlet. Underneath the metal, there was a normal hand, clad in a matching black glove like his other. He leaned back in his chair and sighed. "You have to take it sooner or later. Wouldn't you prefer to leave the doubts behind?"_

"_I—ah, Vince, it's just that I'm… kinda scared. I want to have a kid, but at the same time I don't," she said honestly. "I thought that we would have more time alone before we actually got this serious," she said in a voice that was almost a whine._

_Vincent moved closer to her and pulled her into a gentle kiss, his heart singing at how easily she gave him control and allowed him to do as he wished. Having a baby wouldn't be so bad. "Take the test and let's be done with it," he murmured before tugging gently on her lower lip._

_Yuffie was a few kisses away from being a puddle of ninja, but she sobered at the mention of the test once more. He was right. There was no reason to freak out just yet. She stood, walked off to the bathroom and emerged a few minutes later, looking faintly pale. "We just have to wait for three minutes," she muttered, looking towards the clock._

_Vincent nodded and stood to wrap her in his arms as she shook a little in his arms. "If you aren't, it will be okay. We will have more time to be together and then we will plan a little more carefully for when we are ready to have a child."_

"_You really want to have kids with me?" Yuffie asked, looking into his striking eyes._

"_Why do you doubt it?" he asked softly._

"_We haven't even talked about love yet," she said softly._

"_You doubt that I love you?" he asked her instead._

_Yuffie's face lit up. "Do you?"_

_He gave her a smile he had reserved for only her. "More than anything in the world. You're something special, Yuffie, and I am happy that you chose to be with me. Someone so broken and jaded."_

"_In case you haven't stopped to notice, Vince, we're both broken and jaded. That's why it freaks me out to bring a kid into this world. What if we screw him up?" she asked with a little grin that was almost a grimace._

"_You'll be a great mother, no matter when it happens," he said in reassurance, kissing her once more. "Now, I think the three minutes are up," he said, pulling her towards their bedroom._

"_I can't!" Yuffie said, breathing a little quick. "You go see it and then tell me!" she said, falling onto the bed on her back. She was feeling queasy again and couldn't tell if it was the friggin' morning sickness—if she was indeed pregnant—or the anxiousness._

_Vincent sighed and walked into the bathroom to get the test and the box. He read the instructions as he walked out of the restroom and then looked at the test. Yuffie was leaning on her elbows, biting her lip and waiting for him to say something. "Well?!"_

"_It's negative," he replied._

_Her eyes were wide as she blinked at him. "What?"_

"_It's negative," Vincent repeated, setting down the test on the nightstand and taking a seat next to Yuffie._

_She leaned back on the bed and sniffled a little. "I'm such a baby," she muttered, turning away from Vincent when her eyes watered. "Why am I crying if I was so freaked out about this to begin with?" she asked, voice cracking._

_Vincent leaned over her and kissed her again, lips searching and hands gentle as he cupped her face and as her fingers slid into his mass of soft hair. "Did you want the test to be positive?" he murmured, staring into her soft, brown eyes. They were more like dark chocolate, especially when she allowed any emotion to enter them._

_A few tears trailed down from the corner of her eyes and she shrugged. "Maybe," she said evasively. "While we picked out the test, I started wondering what we would name a baby that was half yours and half mine. What he or she would look like. How we would handle sleepless nights that had nothing to do with discovering each other's body," she said, blushing a little. "Maybe I am ready to have a baby with you," she said with another sniffle._

"_Well, it's a good thing then, that I gave you the wrong answer," said Vincent calmly._

"_What?!" she shrieked, surging forward and bumping their foreheads together painfully. "Are you telling me that it's positive?!" she kept up her shrill tone, rubbing her aching head._

_Vincent rubbed at his forehead too and sat up, motioning towards the test. "Look for yourself," he muttered._

_Yuffie leapt to her feet and read the instructions before looking at the stick. It was positive! She did all she could do at the news. She screamed. It wasn't of anger, or disappointment, not even fear. She threw herself at Vincent and knocked the air out of him as she landed on top of him on the bed. She wasn't very heavy, but she had lunged herself at him with enough force to make him expel all the air in his lungs. "You idiot!" she yelled, punching him in the shoulder._

"_Must you be so physically abusive?" he deadpanned._

_Yuffie just grinned and kissed him, running her hands through his hair again. "That wasn't funny. You made me cry," she said with a small pout._

"_I'm sorry," he said, frowning. He never wanted to make her cry ever again. Especially now that they had confirmed that she was expecting a baby. He frowned. "I don't think you should be body slamming me like that anymore," he murmured, pushing her bangs away from her eyes. "You could hurt the baby."_

_Yuffie sat up and straddled him. "Geez, you're right," she muttered. "Do you see why I was so freaked out in the first place? I don't know anything about babies or being pregnant!" she wailed._

_Vincent pulled her back down and then flipped them over so that he was on top. "That's what the doctor is there for. We will both learn, little by little," he said as he began to kiss her neck._

_The ninja's eyes slid closed and she let out a little sigh of pleasure. "Heh, the gang is going to freak out when we tell them," she whispered before his lips covered hers hotly._

……………

"_Vince?"_

"_Hmm?"_

"_Vince? Wake up!"_

"_Hnnn…"_

"_I have a craving," she said, prodding him in the side._

"_Yuffie… it's one o'clock in the morning. You're hungry now?" he asked in annoyance. "Didn't you eat an entire pizza on your own for dinner?"_

"_It was a small pizza," she said petulantly, turning on the light and sitting up. "You ate half of it, so don't give me any lip. Your baby is hungry and he or she is craving a chili burger with extra-extra pickles from that all night place. Oh, and don't forget the extra thick chocolate shake."_

_Vincent felt like placing a pillow over his head and ignoring her completely. Barely three months into the pregnancy, and already she was driving him mad. The past week had been nothing but cravings, and the last two nights had been cravings in the middle of the night. Tonight made three. He sat up reluctantly and pulled on his cloak over his black pajama shirt. All he did was change his pants, pull on his boots and walk out of the door, nearly dragging his feet. About thirty minutes later, he was sitting with her in bed, watching her eat with so much gusto that he was starting to get cravings. That was, until she dipped the pickles into the milkshake. He made a face and had he not been so schooled at not giving away his thoughts, he would've maybe even gagged a little._

"_That… tastes good to you?" Vincent murmured._

_Yuffie nodded and kept eating. She was finished in a matter of ten minutes, and she sat back, nearly glowing in pleasure, satisfied that her stomach was full. "Thank you so much, Vince," she said, smiling. "The baby and I thank you." She patted her stomach and watched as Vincent reached a hand over and placed it on the still flat skin. It wasn't as taut as it had been before she had gotten pregnant, but there was no bump as of yet._

_He gave her a half smile and then moved to pull off his regular pants in favor for the matching pajama bottoms. Then he laid back down and turned on his side to try to get some more sleep. Yuffie sighed to herself and watched him for a moment. She didn't know why it bothered her that he was trying to get back to sleep, but it did. Her hormones had been all over the place for the past month, and sometimes—no—all the time, Vincent was the one who took the brunt of her mood swings. She sighed and turned off the light before quietly getting off of the bed and walking out of their room and towards the one right next to theirs._

_It was just barely half done, but she could feel the love and the effort that was going into the room. The walls were already painted a soft yellow with a pastel green, her favorite color of course. The ceiling had been left white, but there were sponge stamps in the shape of moons and stars over it. Cloud and Tifa had helped out with the painting of the nursery only last month. Tifa had been more than happy to volunteer her man, and Cloud had known better than to contradict his martial artist wife. Yuffie smiled to herself and took a seat on the only piece of furniture in the room. The smell of paint was gone, and the carpet had been placed, but no other furniture had been purchased yet, and the rocking chair had been a gift from Cid. She sat down and let out a sigh, wondering at how long babies took to be born. She knew that it was nine months, but she meant the time spent waiting and growing together. She was still freaked out, but the more time passed, the more Vincent convinced her that they would be good parents._

"_What are you doing?" Vincent asked quietly, noticing that she was slowly rocking herself in the dark, half-done nursery._

"_I can't go back to sleep just yet. Too full," she replied just as quietly._

_He frowned to himself. "Why didn't you just stay in the room? Aren't you cold?"_

_Yuffie nodded. "Just a little. But don't worry, I'll go to sleep in a few more minutes," she said, telling him that it was okay for him to leave." Vincent reluctantly did so and left her alone in the room. She sat there for about thirty minutes, maybe even a bit more. She didn't know since there was no clock; and she thought about Vincent and their baby, and what she would do once she had him or her in her arms. Probably a whole lot of crying. It was a good thing she wasn't crying over everything, the way Cid said Shera was doing. She was three months ahead in her pregnancy, and already they knew that they were having a girl. Shera teased Cid with calling the little girl Sidney; spelled different than his name on purpose. By the time Yuffie crawled back into bed, it was passed two in the morning and she knew she would sleep in late in the morning, if she didn't get the urge to puke before._

_She smiled when Vincent's arms curled around her and he pulled her against his chest. "I was beginning to wonder if you had fallen asleep on the rocking chair," he murmured against her cheek._

_A thought occurred to her. "Have you been awake all this time?" she asked, her thumb rubbing over the knuckles of the hand on her stomach. He nodded, but offered no other comment as he relaxed against her. Yuffie smiled in the dark and just lay there quietly. Eventually, she gave into her tiredness and fell into a peaceful sleep with Vincent's arms warm and protective around her._

…………………

"_This is a load of crap. Why do we have to suffer through this? If you think about it, it's kinda humiliating!"_

"_I'm with the brat on this one," said a certain grumpy pilot. "I've had to suffer through this thing every week for the past two months, and I haven't learned shit."_

"_Mind your language here," said Shera, rubbing at her seventh month belly._

_Vincent sighed and wasn't all comfortable either, but he and Yuffie had agreed that the class would probably teach them many more things that they didn't know about her pregnancy and her labor to come. He was actually dressed normal for once. He had left his cloak at their home and was in a pair of relaxed pants and a black dress shirt. He shifted uncomfortably when a few other expecting parents came over to introduce themselves._

_Yuffie nearly burst into loud guffaws when a woman asked her if Cid was her husband. "Naw," she said with a laugh. "Cid here is my grandpa. He's married to Shera and he's twice her age. No, my baby daddy is the tall, dark, and mysterious one right there," she said, hitching a thumb towards Vincent._

"_Fuckin' brat, I ain't that old!" Cid exclaimed, earning an elbow in the stomach from Shera, who looked thoroughly annoyed._

_The woman tried to keep her polite smile. "Oh, well, it's certainly nice to meet you. I am Cindy and I am the new instructor. The old one, ironically is on maternity leave. It's always great when we receive new expectant parents. How far along are you?"_

_Yuffie patted her small bump. "Just four months, but Vince and I decided to start learning all we need to know long before the baby is due."_

"_Well, that's a great start. Go ahead and grab a mat and take a seat. Daddy's-to-be, you will sit behind your partner as her support. Today we will go over the breathing exercises for the new parents and then we will watch a birthing video," Cindy said before walking off to introduce herself to other pregnant parents._

_Cid made a face. "Shit, I forgot that the other woman told us that we would be watching that fuckin' video today. I had started to wonder when she would pop. She was unnaturally inflated," he muttered, chewing on a toothpick._

"_She was having _twins_, Cid," said Shera darkly. "Now hush up and let's take our places on the floor. I've wanted to watch that video since they told us about it."_

_Yuffie and Vincent watched the other couple and did as the others did. After awkward introductions on her and Vincent's part, and after a giggle fit when Shera berated Cid for cursing in his intro, the class began. The ninja watched in alarm as they were instructed to sit in bizarre positions and breathe in very strange techniques. How was that going to help? She didn't think she would be able to remember all of that when the labor came around. Hell, she had forgotten by the time the video of the woman in labor came around. She swallowed hard as she watched the woman struggle and the gruesome picture giving birth really was._

"_Magical time, my ass," Cid muttered from beside them._

_Vincent squeezed her hand in his when the baby finally popped out, and they both realized that they would probably have many, many nightmares after the whole experience. Yuffie realized that he was as freaked out as she, but hid it much better. "I'm supposed to go through all that?" she nearly yelled as they walked out of the class and made towards a restaurant nearby. Despite the horrifically disturbing birthing video, she and Shera were hungry._

"_I'm sure it will be okay," said Vincent, not sounding at all convinced._

"_Speak for yourself, buddy! _You_ won't be the one squeezing a watermelon through something this size!" she said, curling her thumb and pointer finger into a small space. She knew she was freaking out, but it was better to do it now, than when the labor would be upon her._

"_Yuffie…" Vincent stopped her as Cid and Shera walked into the restaurant to get a table and to give them a private moment. "You will see that in the end it won't matter. We will have our baby and the labor will be a distant memory."_

_She knew that he was trying to be supportive and comforting, but she didn't give a rat's ass. The woman in the video had suffered like nothing in the world, not even falling off of Dao Chao and breaking her leg in different places had looked as painful. "Fine," she hissed, going for the door. "But… you… get diaper duties when the baby is born."_

_Vincent sighed to himself and decided to put this conversation in the back of his mind for now. Distantly, he realized that Chaos would've been cackling at the situation he found himself in now and would be for the next twenty years or so._

……………

"_What do you think about… Bambi?" Yuffie asked, looking up from her brand new book of baby names. Vincent had given it to her as a gift the day before, but she was barely up to the B's in girl names._

_Vincent stopped walking as they stood in the middle of various cribs of different colors, shapes, and sizes in the baby store that had been voted the best in Edge. "Bambi...? For what?" he asked, not daring to even assume it was a name for their baby. Dear Leviathan_, Bambi Valentine?

"_For the baby, of course," she said. She knew she would never name her baby Bambi, but it was funny to see the reactions on Vincent's face when she suggested a particularly ridiculous name. She was just over the six month mark, and was literally glowing in her short, green sun-dress. She had let her hair grow out a little, and had left behind her own headband. She smiled at him expectantly and Vincent just shook his head, hoping that he didn't push her into some type of crying fit. "I was just kidding, Vince. I don't like that name either." Yuffie turned to a page that was on the other half, where the boy's names were and looked thoughtful. "What about Cornelius or… Maximus?"_

_Vincent was starting to feel a headache coming on. Why had he bought her the damned book in the first place? Had he not recognized that the book was called, The Book of What you Shouldn't Name Your Baby? Well, he was being a tad dramatic, but living with Yuffie and the pregnancy for six months already was beginning to work on dissolving his hard earned patience. He looked at a white crib that was a beautiful work of craftsmanship and decided it would be best to not voice his opinion. "What do you think of this crib?"_

"_It's beautiful, but… you haven't given me an answer yet!" she said with a pout. She had still been yanking his chain, but the fact that he refused to participate in naming their baby was giving her the urge to…_

_Vincent sighed. "Don't cry," he murmured, rubbing the tears from her cheek. "I don't like either of those names, honestly."_

"_I didn't either, but I still expect you to participate," Yuffie whined. "This is our baby and he or she is half yours and half mine. We both have to have an equal part in raising him or her."_

_Vincent nodded and wrapped her in his arms, aware that they were being watched by other customers and the salespeople. "How about… if the baby is a boy, we name him Rowan?" he asked softly._

_Her eyes were a little puffy as she looked up at him. "Why Rowan?"_

"_I remember I had a best friend back in Wutai when I was a small boy. His name was Rowan. I… don't know what happened to him, but I do remember that I cared for him as if he were my brother."_

_Yuffie smiled and nodded. "I think that name would be perfect. And if we have a girl… how about we name her Korin?"_

"_Why Korin?" he asked as they began to inspect the cribs once more._

"_My mother's middle name," Yuffie said fondly. Oddly enough, the memory of her mother brought a smile to her face and no tears._

"_I hope we have a girl then," said Vincent with a small smile. Yuffie hugged him tightly and nodded. "How about we find the crib now and go get a cheeseburger with extra-extra pickles?" he asked with a small smirk._

"_Having cravings, are we?" Yuffie asked, rubbing the spot when she could feel the baby kicking._

"_A bit," he admitted, rubbing her stomach as well. He just hoped that his cravings didn't stretch out as far as dipping pickles into a chocolate shake went._

…………

"_Vincent?"_

"_Hmmm…?"_

"_Vince?"_

"… _ngghh…"_

"_Do you still think I'm pretty?"_

"_What?" he asked, the sleep veil receding a little._

"_I'm huge," she said, voice sounding watery. "It's been days since we last made love," she said with a sniffle. _

_Vincent turned to face her. She was nearly in a sitting position because of the various pillows trying to make her comfortable now that she was close to her due date. He sat up next to her and refrained from making a comment that it was nearly three in the morning this time. He took her hand in his and pressed a kiss to her knuckles. "I think that no matter what, you will always be beautiful. We haven't made love because you've been more tired than usual. And that's okay, it's almost time for the baby to come. You should get all the rest you can."_

_Yuffie nodded, but couldn't stop the sniffle she felt coming. Vincent leaned forward and kissed her gently, taking extra care with her. Of course he still found her beautiful. She could've been covered in mud and he still would've wanted her, but he had been worried that any type of that… contact would affect the baby, despite the reassurances of the doctor that it wouldn't. He had been itching to touch Yuffie for a few days now, but had refrained; he just hadn't known that she would react this way because he hadn't made a move. She gasped and pulled away from him._

"_Either that was one hell of a kiss…" she muttered, "or I think my water just broke," she said with wide eyes._

_Vincent looked at her in surprise and then realized that the bed was indeed soaked through where she sat. "Are you in pain?" he asked quickly, sitting up straighter._

"_A little. Shera said that it can take a while after the water breaks," Yuffie said calmly. She looked at Vincent and felt her heart skip a beat when he kissed her again. "We're having a baby," she murmured._

_Vincent stood and quickly dressed, grabbing a few articles of clothing for her, including a dress she had had ready for this occasion, her coat and shoes, and the baby bag. "Should we go now?" he asked._

_Yuffie shook her head when she realized how far apart her contractions were. She was unnaturally calm for a first mother, and she knew it, but her mother had taught her to endure pain, and right now it wasn't so bad. "Let's wait for a little bit, and then we'll go. Just help me up so that I can change, okay?"_

_Vincent did as she requested and felt his knees shake a little. Everything he had lived, everything he had done paled in comparison to this moment. He was going to be a father. Yuffie was going to be the mother of his child. He could've never hoped for anything as amazing and pure as this._

…………

_Yuffie held back a scream as her contractions began to come closer and closer. Gone was her control and her calm. All she could think about was the pain and how much she hated Vincent and every other man who decided to poke his head into her hospital room. Shera and Tifa were sitting with her, holding her hand and giving her encouraging words as they tried to help her breathe during the contractions. "I'm going to castrate Vincent so that he never does this to me again!" she exclaimed as another one hit her._

"_I had the same thoughts on Cloud," Tifa said as she wiped the sweat from Yuffie's forehead with a damp cloth. "But the end result is what matters," she assured her friend._

_Shera nodded and kept the count of how far apart her contractions were and how long. "You just wait until you hold your baby for the first. There's no experience as amazing as that one."_

"_It's been nearly twelve hours," Yuffie said with a gasp of pain._

_There was a knock at the door and the doctor walked in to check on Yuffie once more. She had been by almost an hour before, and Yuffie was ready to murder someone if she had to wait another hour. "Okay, Yuffie," she said with a smile. "I think we're just about ready to get that baby out." The doctor had a nurse help her sit up and Tifa and Shera walked out to let Vincent in. It took about another thirty minutes with the pushing and the heaving and the cursing Vincent to the deepest pits of hell, but despite the excruciating pain, Tifa was right, the end result was what mattered._

_Vincent kissed her just he heard the cry of their baby once the doctor had him out. He had held Yuffie's hand and endured her cursing, but he said nothing and only wondered at the type of pain she was feeling. "Congratulations! It's a boy!" the doctor said brightly. Then she moved over and handed Vincent a tightly wrapped bundle that was covered in white goop and red all over, and he stared into tiny red eyes as the baby cried loudly, squirming. There was nothing like holding such a small but separate piece of himself for the first time. In that moment, it was very clear that his life would never be the same._

_Aside from the shock of black hair, and the red eyes, the baby would most likely look like Yuffie. Vincent smirked and handed him over to his ninja, watching her as she looked at the boy and began to cry. "Hello, my little Rowan," she said, voice cracking. She pressed a kiss to his tiny nose and smiled when his mouth opened wide._

"_Oh, I think he's hungry. Let's get you both cleaned up and then we'll take him to your room so that he can eat," said the nurse who had assisted the doctor._

_Yuffie nodded and looked at Vincent tiredly, still listening to the amazing lungs her son had. "I'm sorry for cussing you out," she said with a faint, tired smile._

_Vincent just took her hand in his and kissed her gently once more. "As long as you didn't cause me any bodily harm, we're both okay," he said, giving her a proud look. "We'll be good parents," he assured her._

"_I know we will," she replied, squeezing his hand._

…………

"Bleh, you see? He went soft after the birth of his kid!" Cid exclaimed.

"I thought I told you not to point fingers, Cid," said Vincent, standing and walking towards Yuffie, who was still trying to get Rowan to calm down. The boy had just recently turned one, and they had gotten together to celebrate his birthday, and three months before, they had celebrated Sydney's.

"Hah, can't even take a joke!" Cid called, turning to his companions. "Spiky, you're next. What's all this kinky shit about your kid getting conceived on Seventh Heaven's roof?"

Vincent smirked to himself and approached Yuffie, who was talking to the other women. "He won't quiet?" he asked, noting that Rowan was looking grumpy, much like Yuffie early in the morning. As soon as he saw him, the baby reached for him. Vincent took him when Yuffie handed him over and smiled.

"Can you guess why we're all here?" Yuffie asked with a mischievous grin, walking with him a little distance away from the group. Rowan finally quieted and looked sleepy in Vincent's arms. He gave her a questioning look. "Well, it appears that it's still a surprise, but Shera is expecting again. Stupid Cid, didn't he learn from the damned Lamaze classes? I can't believe they're going through it all again."

The gunman gave her a smirk and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "Was it really such a horrifying experience?" he asked her.

"Let's ask Reeve to come up with a way of getting a man pregnant. Maybe then you'll see that I wasn't exaggerating," she said with a small glare. "But I guess you're right. I'm being dramatic. I can't guarantee anything, but I'll think about giving you another baby in the future. Once Rowan is a little older. Well, maybe _a lot_ older," she said with a grin.

Vincent looked down at the child in his arms when he felt tiny hands on his face. Rowan was looking at him from behind crimson eyes, framed by the darkest lashes he had ever seen. He had been right. The boy had Yuffie's face, even though his coloring was all his. He had cherished every milestone of his son's, and realized that he was done with repenting for his sins. He had two things to look forward to and he didn't mind suffering through another nine months of Yuffie hormones, as he had taken to calling them in his head. "Thank you for making me happy," he said to Yuffie.

She grinned and nodded. "Goes both ways, Vinnie-bear," she said with a teasing note in her voice. Yuffie let out a happy laugh when his eyebrows scrunched together in displeasure. She wrapped her arms around him and pressed a kiss to her son's nose as Vincent wrapped an arm around her waist.

"Say cheese!" Tifa called before there was a flash and she caught them in an amazingly sweet picture.

"Hey, Vince!" Cid called. "Don't you wanna hear Cloud's story?"

Vincent looked at Yuffie as she grabbed Rowan from him and walked back to the women. "You better tell me all about these stories you guys are sharing once we go home," she called, smiling at him.

In that moment, Vincent came to the conclusion that he had never been so happy. Watching the smile on Yuffie's face, and how easily she was holding their son. The boy was an amazing little creature that the faiths had blessed them with, and he couldn't think of living his life without them now. He let out a sigh and made his way back to his old friends, who were having a laugh at Cloud's expense. Time to hear what other horrors the other men had gone through, he thought with a smirk.

…

…

…

…

…

…

I'm happy with this beginning, but don't know if you guys liked it, or if I should continue it. I know I've said it a thousand times before, but I just love baby fics. I know there are various others out there, so I won't take credit for the plot. Don't want anymore drama, but I used the plot my way, right? I hope everyone liked it and that I didn't get too many facts about pregnancy wrong. I'm working on my humor because really, I can write fluff and drama way better than humor, so I hope it was okay. I asked my mom a few questions about pregnancy, and she told me that after her water broke with me, she was nearly in labor for two days. Ouch. Or maybe I misunderstood _when _exactly her water broke, but her labor did last that long. Luckily, I don't have any kids, but that's what makes it harder to write pregnancy scenes. I try to incorporate what I have read in books and magazines, but you don't really know until you go through it.

For the record, I have no idea how much the distance between an airship and the ground would be, I just made that up and if it's wrong, feel free to correct me! Also, the scene where Vincent gives Yuffie the result of the test and it's negative was borrowed from the episode of _"Friends,"_ where Rachel takes another test at Monica's wedding and Phoebe tells her its negative, so credit goes to the show, which I love, by the way!

Also, I want to point out that this would be part one of four, though I don't know yet if I want to venture into CidShera territory. I've never written Cid for more than a few lines, and I'm afraid that I'll kill his character or something. Still, if you guys want me to, I will try my best. The next chapter will focus on Cloud and Tifa's pregnancy, then Tseng, Elena, and the Turks, which will be more angsty than humorous—but with Reno, who knows what will happen—and then I will try for Cid and Shera. Anyway, I hope everyone enjoyed this piece, though it came out longer than I expected. See you all around!

Joey


	2. Baby Strife

………………………………

**Daddy Blues**

…………………………

**Baby Strife**

………………………………

Cloud cleared his throat as Vincent took a seat with them again. He had never enjoyed talking in public, except while they had been searching for Sephiroth years before. He had gotten better at public displays of anything, but still, the things he had gone through with Tifa were a tad private. But if Vincent Valentine, the most private person he had ever met, had allowed himself to talk about the nine months with Yuffie, Cloud could very well recount his nine months with Tifa.

"It wasn't kinky," Cloud defended after Cid's comment. "It was our first anniversary and we wanted something quiet and away from people. Believe it or not, there was privacy on the roof of Seventh Heaven."

"Right. I bet that if Reeve checks his satellite feed for that night, he'll get some very good blackmailing material," said Cid.

"It's a good thing he would _never_ do that, right Reeve?" Cloud asked him, a deadly glint in his eyes.

"Right," said Reeve, clearing his throat and shuffling the playing cards nervously.

Cloud looked smug that he still had that thing about him that frightened people. Maybe it was the eyes, he mused. He looked down at his son when Zack looked at him. He was happily drinking from a sippy cup and looking up at him with his big, blue eyes. His hair, though it wasn't blond, it wasn't that dark brunette that Tifa's was either. It was somewhere in between, a dark, sandy blond. "It took Tifa about a week to finally tell me she was pregnant, and you guys were all there to hear it, remember?"

"Ha! It was the day she blurted it out cause this idiot was about to shove some liquor down her throat," said Barret, hitching a thumb towards Cid, who gave him the finger.

"Why did it take her a week to tell you?" Vincent asked as he took the half eaten cookie that Zack was handing over. He didn't know if it was a gift for him to _eat_, or if the boy expected him to get rid of it.

"Gentlemen, mind if I join you in the game?" asked Tseng as he walked over to them.

"Pull up a chair," said Reeve. "We haven't been playing much. The guys here were just recounting what it was like to suffer through nine months of the miracle of life," he said with a grin.

Tseng grabbed a chair and sat with them at the table, which was by now a little crowded. He was mildly interested to hear what the "heroes" had to say about fatherhood. He certainly had plenty to say, and it wasn't all good. He took the offered glass of some type of fruit juice with vodka that Barret handed over and listened to the blond swordsman.

Cloud noticed that Zack was falling asleep in his arms and smiled faintly. "Tifa went to the doctor for a routine check-up and found out on her own. We agreed that we wanted to have a baby, so she was going to get a check up to see if she was healthy enough to get pregnant. I was on a delivery, so I didn't go with her that day. Every time she tried to tell me, we kept getting interrupted."

He remembered those days quite vividly. She had looked as if she had needed to tell him something extremely important, but every time he had been about to ask her, something or someone would interrupt them.

…………………

"_Cloud?"_

_Achoo!_

"_Are you okay?" Tifa asked in worry._

_Cloud nodded and realized that she wouldn't be able to see him through the phone. "Yeah, I think so. Sorry Teef, but I don't think I'll be able to make it in time for dinner," he said. "It's raining like hell over here. I thought I had gotten used to riding through storms and not getting sick, but apparently I was wrong."_

"_Oh, well, drive safely. I'll make you some chicken soup for when you get back. Please be safe?" she asked in worry._

"_I don't mind you calling, but was there another reason why you called? How was your doctor's appointment?" Cloud asked her, pushing his soaked spikes out of his hair as he stood under the shelter of a cave. He had stopped to take Tifa's call and to wait out the rain for a little._

"_It was fine…" she trailed off a little. "I just thought you'd be home on time."_

"_I know. I'm sorry Tifa, but I'm telling you that this rain isn't letting up at all. I'll be home as soon as possible. Tell the kids I said goodnight, and don't wait up for me. I don't want you missing sleep for nothing, okay?"_

"_Okay Cloud. I'll see you later," she said with a faint smile as he said his goodbye and they both hung up. She had closed the bar early in order to prepare a nice dinner for them both, but that had gone down the drain now. She looked towards the set table with the candles in the middle and the nice plates she always took good care of and sighed. She put away the candles and then called the kids so that they could come down to eat dinner with her._

_By the time Cloud arrived, the moon was high in the sky and all the lights were off in the bar and at their home. There had been something about Tifa's tone that had made him a little suspicious, but he hadn't dwelled much on it because he was fighting off the headache and the stuffed nose. He felt like utter crap and he couldn't remember the last time he had gotten sick. He supposed that it had had something to do with the "vitamins" against any sickness that Shinra had injected them with every year, but still, he hadn't gotten sick immediately after he had stopped being a Shinra grunt. He secured Fenrir and then made his way into his home._

_Everything was quiet, but when he stopped by the kitchen, he saw that Tifa had left him a note and a container with the soup she had promised. He warmed it up and took the opportunity to stop by his old room to take a hot shower so that he didn't wake Tifa. His clothing had been sopping wet and he pulled on an old pair of pants and a shirt he found still in the old room. He walked back downstairs and sipped his soup quickly, then nearly dragged his feet to his and Tifa's room._

_She was sleeping peacefully, and usually when he was this late, he woke her up to let her know that he was home. Sometimes one kiss would lead to more, and they would spend a deliciously sleepless night together. Tonight, he doubted he'd be up for anything. As he sat slowly on the bed, he watched her sleep, dark lashes against her creamy skin. He couldn't think of a time when he hadn't been in love with her. Well, actually he could, but he didn't feel like dwelling on his mistaken identity tonight. He felt like bad enough already and he just wanted to get some sleep. He lay down on the warm bed and pressed a kiss to Tifa's forehead before turning away from her in an attempt to not get her sick._

_A few hours later, Tifa woke to the sound of Cloud sneezing and coughing. She sat up slowly and noticed that he was clutching a box of tissues to him. "Cloud?" she asked softly._

"_Ugh…?"_

"_Wow, you do have a bad cold," she mused as she got out of bed and walked to their bathroom to get some sleep/cough medicine. After nearly forcing it down her stubborn husband's throat, she sat at the edge of his side of the bed, running her hands through his soft spikes. "Cloud?"_

"_Hmm?" he asked, eyes closed. "Head hurts," he muttered._

"_I think there's something you need to know," she said with a faint smile. "I went to the doctor today, and she… she told me that we're already pregnant. Cloud, we're having a baby!" she said in a quietly excited tone._

_All she heard was a wheezy type of snore and with a frown realized that Cloud had already fallen asleep. Tifa glared at her sleeping husband and grabbed the pillow he was hugging, bopping him over the head with it. He just made an inarticulate noise and rolled away from her, coughing into her pillow. Tifa made a face. She would certainly not sleep in her bed until he was okay again. The last thing she needed was to get sick. So she walked off to wash her hands and then grabbed a spare quilt and some pillows before walking to Cloud's old room, where his singles bed still was. _

_She lay down and stared at the ceiling for a few minutes, rubbing her still flat stomach. She was only into the first month, but thankfully no symptoms had hit her just yet. She'd heard a few scary stories of women who said that their morning sickness never let up, but she was so excited about the whole experience. She had never imagined that she and Cloud would end up at that point, with a baby on the way. Tifa fell asleep with a smile on her face and with thoughts of blue eyed, blond babies._

…………

"_Cloud, there's something important that I need to tell you," Tifa said as she poured a few drinks for a couple of patrons who had just walked in._

"_What about?" he asked, his cold already gone, after a few days of whining and making her life a nightmare. Who knew that men could be such babies when it came to a measly cold? He was sitting at the bar counter, his eyes on the various men who had come in that evening. He was sure that none of them were interested in the drinks, and he swore that he would gouge some eyes out by the end of the night if they so much as looked at Tifa wrong._

"_It's about my doctor's appointment," said Tifa with a small smile._

_Cloud finally turned to look at her, worry making his eyes glow a little more than usual. "Is everything okay? Are we ready to have a baby?"_

"_Well—"_

"_Hey, what does a guy have to do to get some service around here? Do I have to strip down naked and jump onto the table?" asked a drawling voice from behind Cloud._

_The blond closed his eyes slowly and counted to ten. Hearing Reno talk was like nails scratching over a black board. Well, at least to him. Cloud certainly had noticed the smiles on Tifa and Yuffie's faces whenever the redhead walked into the bar. What was it about the no brained Turk that attracted women like moths to a flame? And no, he wasn't jealous of the other man. Cloud watched Tifa smile and had to close his hands into fists in order to not strangle Reno. "You can start by waiting for Tifa to finish what she's doing."_

_Tifa ignored Cloud's barely civil words and shook her head. "Take a seat guys. What will you have?" she asked cheerfully._

"_Two beers, to start off," said Reno, winking. Rude, as always, just sat and watched Tifa in silence._

"_Two beers and then you're gone," said Cloud, his tone darkly threatening._

"_Cloud," Tifa said with a frown. "What's wrong with you today?"_

"_We're gonna take a seat by the door," said Reno, grabbing his beer and walking off with his partner, leaving the couple to talk about whatever was eating the swordsman._

_Cloud sighed to himself and watched grumpily as Tifa dropped her question and walked off to see to a few more patrons who had walked in. Honestly, he didn't know why he was so moody, but he just wasn't in the mood to see men hitting and/or flirting with his wife. So he kept quiet for the next two hours until the bar was finally closed, and he helped Tifa tuck the children into their beds after dinner._

_He took a long while looking through his maps for the deliveries he would make on the next day, but he knew that Tifa was usually still up, waiting for him, and he supposed that she had questions about his behavior earlier in the evening. "Teef? What was it that you were going to tell me earlier—" he trailed off when he saw that she was now fast asleep. He had thought that she had been awake, since the light in the bedroom was still on. Cloud moved towards her and pressed a kiss to her lips, watching as a little smile curled her lips. They would have time to talk tomorrow evening, after his deliveries._

…………

_Tifa sighed to herself as she, Shera, and Yuffie sat out on the Highwinds back porch, having drinks, non-alcoholic for Tifa, though only the women knew about it, and talking quietly to each other. "Thank you for managing to keep quiet," Tifa told her friends, most especially Yuffie, who sometimes couldn't keep a secret to herself even if her life depended on it._

"_Don't worry Teefs, I wouldn't be myself if I hadn't at least dropped hints, but Cloud is a total dunce. I think he doesn't get the concept of 'bun in the oven.' He thought I was talking about the bread you were baking yourself," said the ninja with a snort._

"_Will ya quit your yappin'?" Cid bellowed, walking over to take his wife's hand in his. "It's time to start celebrating and I brought a crateful of the finest champagne available!"_

_Shera smiled and laughed when Barret and Reeve popped the corks and began to pour glasses for them all. Yuffie pranced over to grab an entire bottle of her own champagne, and ignored Vincent's warning words to not gulp down that much liquor so quickly. "Here ya go, Tifa," said Cid, handing over her drink._

"_Oh… uh, sorry Cid, but I can't drink," Tifa said evasively, holding up her cup of juice. "I'll cheer with this one."_

"_Uh-uh. Teef, I paid a pretty penny for my Shera to have the best on our anniversary, and I ain't taking no for an answer. Now drink and be merry!"_

_Shera tried to get Cid to stop trying to shove the glass into the brunette's hand. "Honey, I don't think she wants to drink. Leave her alone!" she said quickly._

"_Hello no, Shera!" he yelled, catching people's attention. "Give me one good reason why she shouldn't have champagne!"_

"_Because I'm pregnant!" Tifa said in exasperation, realizing what she had blurted out a little too late and to everyone who had been standing with them on the porch._

"_What…?" asked Cloud, voice a little shaky._

"_This isn't how I wanted to tell you," said Tifa, getting a little emotional. "And I didn't want to ruin the celebration by getting taking all the attention. But… I've been trying to tell this past week and I just haven't been able to!" she exclaimed._

"_Ah, shit, Tifa, I'm sorry," said Cid, looking embarrassed and upset with himself._

"_Don't worry about it Cid," she said with a brighter smile. "I guess I have to thank you, because otherwise I would've probably ended up telling Cloud until the baby was born, with the way things were going."_

_Cloud's mouth was still hanging open and he looked a little pale as she reached over and took her hand before nearly dragging her into Cid and Shera's home. He walked with her through the entire first floor and then out the front door to ensure their privacy. Once on the front porch, he turned to look at her, eyes a little wide. "You're having our baby?"_

_Tifa nodded and gasped out a little breath when she felt, rather than saw his arms wrap tightly around her. "When I went to the check up with the doctor, she had some tests run, including a pregnancy test. She didn't tell me until after the tests were done and she had the results. I'm going to an appointment with a gynecologist this Monday to make sure that everything is healthy with the baby," she said, hugging him back just as tightly._

_Cloud kissed her gently, trying to convey just how much he loved her. He wasn't one for many words, and she expressed her love in words to him so much easier than he could, but that didn't mean that he didn't feel the same way. He would give his life for Tifa if he had to, and now there would be a baby in their lives that he would love just the same. A little being half his and half hers. Of course he loved Denzel and Marlene just as much as he did Tifa, but Marlene was Barret's daughter, and Denzel was more of a little brother than anything else, but they were his kids too. He was nervous, now that he thought about it. He knew absolutely nothing of babies and though he knew Tifa would me an excellent mother, he had a few doubts about his own abilities as a father. _

_Well, the only thing certain in his mind was that he would be a better father than his own, who had walked out on him and his mother when he had needed him the most. "I promise… I will always be there for you both. For you all," he whispered against her hair._

_Tifa felt a few tears slip from her eyes and nodded, running her fingers through his soft hair. She saw the blinds by the window move and let out a small laugh when various pairs of eyes peered at them, except for some crimson ones. Of course, Vincent had too much self control to eavesdrop on other people. "I think our moment has been cut short," she said, pulling away from Cloud and motioning towards the window._

_Cloud smirked when the blinds closed and he heard Shera berating everyone who had been intruding. "I'll be there every step of the way," he promised, blue eyes shining, and it had nothing to do with the mako._

"_I didn't expect any less from you," she replied proudly._

_Her conviction in him warmed his heart and he knew there had never been and never would be anyone he loved more than Tifa._

…………………

_Cloud sighed to himself as he took care of the few patrons of the bar that showed up in the middle of the afternoon. Tifa had been inconspicuously absent for the better part of the last month. She was just into her third month and had spent the last few weeks sleeping during the day, and staying awake during the night. She didn't know what prompted the insomnia, but the doctor told her that it was okay as long as she got the hours of sleep that she needed. Cloud had been forced to put his delivery job on hold, and many of his usual customers had flipped, but he wanted to be with Tifa through her entire pregnancy. He wanted to be a good father from the very beginning. He sighed to himself and smiled when the kids walked into the bar, out from school early. "You guys want lunch?"_

_The kids shared a look and Denzel spoke up as he dropped his backpack on the bar counter. "Where's Tifa? Didn't she cook anything?"_

_Cloud didn't miss the fact that the kids had ignored his question regarding lunch. His cooking wasn't _that_ bad. "She's taking an afternoon nap. But I can make you both sandwiches. It isn't going to be something complicated that will end up giving you a stomach ache."_

_Marlene grinned and hugged him. "We love you, Cloud, but cooking isn't the best thing you can do. Don't worry about anything. I'll make us all some sandwiches and meanwhile, you can help Denzel with his math homework," said the girl brightly before running off towards the kitchen._

"_Tifa's been acting weird with all this baby business," Denzel commented as he sat on a stool and took out his math book._

_Cloud nodded in agreement. "But we have to supportive. She's growing another life inside of her," he murmured, a little smile on his face. "Now come on. Let's get your homework done so that you can have the rest of the day free."_

_Night came all too soon, and Yuffie and Barret had joined him at the bar and had helped cook. Unfortunately, Yuffie was just as bad as cooking as Cloud, but Barret made up for it with a chicken broth Elmyra had shown him how to cook. Tifa had spent the rest of the evening with the children and had not been down to the bar for hours. He wondered what she would say when she saw how messy the kitchen was. He was scrubbing away at the dishes when Tifa finally walked down and took in her once pristine kitchen._

"_What happened here?" she asked, eyes a little wide. There were stains on the wall behind the stove, the counters were filled with spilled food, and the floor felt sticky where she stood._

"_Uh, Yuffie and Barret?" he offered lamely. She let out a heavy sigh and grabbed a few rags and some cleaning solution. Cloud looked scandalized. "Tifa, you shouldn't have to clean something you didn't do. Just go upstairs and try to get some normal sleep hours," he said quickly, nearly shoving her out the door and towards the stairs._

"_Are you sure?" she asked him with a small smile._

"_Yes, I'm sure."_

_Tifa sighed to herself and walked off to their bedroom. The children were already bathed and asleep in their rooms, and she had sneaked off to do the laundry while Cloud had been busy, so there wasn't much else that needed to be taken care of. She grabbed a pink box from under their bed and sat down, pulling out various yarns and two knitting needles. She began to knit while she waited for Cloud to finish with the kitchen. By the time he dragged his feet into the room, it was past midnight and she had partially formed a blanket of a very soft yellow color. She waited for Cloud to shower and felt sorry for him when he nearly stumbled into bed._

"_What are you doing?" he asked._

"_Knitting," she replied. "I've taken to knitting various little things since I haven't been able to sleep. I'm working on a blanket now."_

_Against himself, Cloud was intrigued and he sat up a little and leaned on her pillows. He watched as her usually gentle hands used the needles to knit quickly. Tifa had always hated her hands, but he thought they were beautiful. She used them to tuck the kids in their beds, to cook, to keep their home clean, had once upon a time used them to protect their family, but most importantly, they touched him with a gentleness that he had never felt before. Now they were working on something for their baby, and they were even more beautiful to Cloud._

_Tifa's nearly maroon colored eyes took in his wonder at how easily she was creating the blanket. "Do you want to try it?"_

_Cloud blinked at her and then shook his head. "No, thanks. I'm tired, plus I don't think I'll be too good at it," he said, turning on his side and getting comfortable to sleep. But he couldn't. Instead, he kept watching her as she knitted easily. Eventually, he fell asleep, his memory retaining the loops and pulls and every other movement Tifa's hands made._

_Tifa smiled to herself and realized that no man would be caught dead knitting, especially someone like Cloud. Why was it that men were so touchy about these little things? It wasn't like knitting would take away from his masculinity, but Tifa knew better than to comment on his manliness, otherwise she would never hear the end of it. She sighed to herself and kept knitting. Well, at least he had taken on more responsibilities around the house, even when he didn't know half of what he was doing._

…………………

"_Excuse me!"_

_Cloud, Cid, and Vincent stopped dead in their tracks at the sound of Tifa's voice and the look of annoyance on her face. "What?" asked Cloud, confused._

"_Cloud, I just cleaned the floors and you're dragging in mud from outside!" she said in a whiny tone, reminiscent of one Yuffie was prone to use. Vincent was mildly disturbed to hear it on Tifa. "You know how hard I work at keeping the bar and the kitchen clean. Why can't you be a little more considerate?"_

_Cid and Vincent gave him a pitying look and cleaned their shoes on the welcome mat in front of the door. Cloud sighed heavily and refrained from saying anything that would set her to tears, or that would result in him getting yelled at in front of his old friends. Tifa was into her fifth month of the pregnancy, and all had been good until she had started with the nesting period, which not all women went through. She had had very little morning sickness, and her cravings had toned down, but every little movement he made resulted in him getting something dirtied, even if it was only his fingertips._

"_Teef, we cleaned the entire bar yesterday night, it's only been a few hours. It can't be too dirty," Cloud said gently, trying not to wake the sleeping dragon. Tifa threw down the rag in her hands and placed her hands on her hips. _

"_How about we leave you two alone and wait outside?" asked Vincent, opening the door for him and Cid before the shouting commenced._

"_Don't you appreciate what I do around the house?" she asked tearfully, no screams attached. "I try to keep everything clean and in order while you're out making deliveries, but you never appreciate it!" she said, voice cracking._

_Cloud was still at a loss when it came to her mood swings. Geez, she could be yelling at him and crying in one moment, and then kissing him passionately in the next. Now she had gone completely psycho with the nesting and cleaning. She had even made him move the furniture around a total of five times in the last week. He tentatively walked over to her and wrapped his arms around her. "Of course I appreciate what you do. And I also appreciate all the things you're going through while our baby grows inside of you," he said softly._

_Tifa smiled and did realize that she had been acting very unreasonable the past few weeks before, but there wasn't much she could do. She couldn't control her crazy hormones, and she was sorry that Cloud was always the one to suffer at her hands, but she was the one who would go through nine months of aches and pains before the final showdown, also known as going into labor. "I'm sorry for flipping out," she murmured before kissing him gently. She suddenly froze and pulled away from him with a gasp._

"_What's wrong? Are you okay?" Cloud asked urgently._

_Tifa took his hand and placed it on the spot where she had just felt a kick, a big smile lighting her face. "The baby is kicking!" she said happily, turning when the door opened and Cid and Vincent stepped into the bar once more._

"_Is it safe yet?" asked the pilot._

"_Come here!" said Tifa excitedly. When the men did so, she grabbed Cid's hand and placed it on her round belly where there was still a gentle fluttering. "The baby just kicked for the first time." Vincent was a bit more reluctant, but he was amazed at how it felt to touch the little life in Tifa's womb. He removed his hand and stepped back as Tifa hugged Cloud tightly._

"_Are you okay now?" Cloud asked, his heart soaring at the fact that he had been present at his baby's first kick._

_Tifa nodded and retained her cheerfulness. "I'm happy," she admitted. "Now… since Cid and Vincent are here, they can help you rearrange the furniture in the bedroom!"_

_Cloud groaned audibly and shook his head. He hoped that the nesting period would soon be over. Even with his strength, Tifa was bound to wear him out sooner or later._

…………

_Two months to go, Cloud mused as he sat in bed, watching Tifa as she slept during regular hours like a normal person again. He had been worried that her hours of sleep would affect her health or the baby. Unfortunately, he was the one who couldn't sleep now, and it was more because curiosity was burning in the back of his mind. As he laid there in the darkness, a hand settled gently on Tifa's swollen stomach, he let loose a sigh and sat up, turning on the lamp by the bed and hoping that Tifa didn't wake up. He pulled a box from his section of the closet, hidden by various materials he used to shine his swords, and walked over to sit by the window on a comfortable old arm chair. When he opened the box a small smirk lifted his lips as he gazed at his current project. Even before all the deal with the mako poisoning and Zack's death, he had had the ability to retain even the smallest of things in his memory. Now that he was back to himself, it was no different._

_In his hands he held a halfway knitted blanket of soft blue yarn. He had watched Tifa for countless nights while she knitted a beautiful yellow blanket for their baby, and though he had shot down her suggestion of trying it himself, he had done tried it on his own time. Though it wasn't as impressive as the one Tifa had done, it was the feeling that counted, and his thoughts were all bright and expectant towards the future to come. He just hoped that he found a way to get it to Tifa without her knowing that he had been the one who knitted it. So, with a look of concentration he had always used before every battle, he began to knit. He wouldn't live it up if any of the guys found out what he was doing._

…………

_After a surprise baby shower that Shera, Yuffie, and Elmyra had thrown for Tifa, Cloud found that they had saved him and Tifa hours of grief from having to buy things for the baby. They had gone to a store once and had nearly ended up in an argument regarding cribs and what type of mattress would be best suited for the baby. How was he supposed to know what would be best? The same went for clothing and blankets. Thankfully though, the women of the neighborhood had given them various gifts and were still sitting with Tifa as she went through each package or gift bag._

_Cloud was starting to get a headache at all the 'oohs' and the 'awws.' To quote Cid, he needed a fucking drink. He had enjoyed participating in all of the things involving Tifa and their baby, but sitting with a group of women who wouldn't stop talking was not something he was looking forward to. Curiously enough, Reeve and Barret were sitting with them. Barret with Elmyra, and Reeve with a neighbor who was single and very pretty. _"_If we're quiet enough, we can make it to the door without being spotted," Cid muttered, an unlit cigarette hanging in his mouth._

_Cloud smirked and shook his head, his attention caught by the package in Tifa's hands. He watched her as she searched it for a card or any indication of who it was from, but she gave up and opened the blue box with no bow or any other wrapping. He watched her smile and look around at the women in question. It was obvious that it had been hand knit, but the blue blanket was complete and of a soft and warm material. No one took credit for it, but still it made him happy to see Tifa happy._

"_Oh, thank you. Who ever knitted this. It's obvious that you spent many sleepless nights on this and it's beautiful," she said, looking around the room. Her eyes met Cloud's and he cleared his throat before taking a sip of his orange juice. She couldn't possibly know, right? He had always made sure that she was sleeping before he attempted to knit. The blanket had come out better than he expected, but was nowhere near as nice as the one Tifa had made. He smirked faintly to himself and kept watching Tifa as she opened the rest of the gifts._

_Hours later, after the gang had pitched in to help clean and clear the wrapping paper from the bar, Cloud and Tifa were finally alone; Barret and Elmyra had offered to watch the kids for a few days. Cloud and Tifa entered the newly remodeled room that had once been his. It was now a whimsical nursery of baby blue and yellow, with moogles as the main theme. Yuffie, Marlene, and Denzel had brought up all the gifts and they were scattered all over the room, but most were sitting on the changing table._

_Tifa walked over to the crib and grabbed the blue blanket that was sitting right next to the one she had made a few months before. "Did you think I wouldn't find it sooner or later?" she asked with a smile._

_Cloud looked sheepish. "I thought I had hidden it well," he admitted._

_Tifa kissed his cheek. "You should know by now that nothing is hidden from me in this house. Especially after the whole nesting period," she said with a little roll of her eyes. "I think I inspected every corner of this place in order to get it all clean. When I stumbled upon the blanket, I think I cried for like an hour," she said._

"_Why?" he asked, bewildered._

"_Because it was the sweetest thing you had done for our baby yet." Tifa rubbed her stomach and winced a little when a sharp kick was dealt from within. "I think that the baby will love it once he or she is born."_

_Cloud rubbed her stomach and crouched, almost eye level with it. "You better like it, kid. I spent sleepless nights getting it finished, and though it doesn't look the best, I put everything I feel for you and your mom into it," he murmured softly._

_Tifa smiled when the baby stilled within her and she knew that he or she was listening to Cloud's voice. It was amazing how well their baby already knew their friends. There were times when Yuffie got her little one so riled up that he was literally jumping inside of her. Tifa didn't know why exactly, but Yuffie's cheerfulness seemed to extend to anyone around her. Now, when Cloud talked, the baby would sit still and listen, and would only start moving once Cloud stopped talking. It was an amazing process, being pregnant, and she realized that she would to go through it again in the future. She just wasn't sure if her opinion would change once she went into labor. She looked at Cloud as he stood and smiled as his blue eyes shined on her. "Would you mind calling our baby Zack if he's a boy?" she asked softly._

_Cloud's eyes softened on her and he nodded. "I don't think I did him justice when I promised that I would live both our lives for him. But I'm happy now. I guess I will keep his promise by calling our kid Zack. He can live both Zack's life and my own better than we did."_

"If_ the baby is a boy," Tifa reminded, smiling still. "Now, don't nag me, but I want to put these things away. I'm perfectly capable of doing things on my own, Cloud. Besides, I won't be moving anything heavy," she said in a tone that allowed no arguments._

_Cloud knew better than to set her off, especially with her crazy hormones. He just nodded and made for the door. "I didn't get a chance to get anything to eat. I'll be downstairs," he said before leaving._

_He walked into the kitchen and spotted two boxes of pizza, only half of the slices gone. Though Shera had wanted to cook something more formal, Tifa had insisted that the pizza with slices of pineapple and ham was fine, since she had been craving it as of late. Cloud had even watched on as Tifa poured some pancake syrup onto the cheese, a bit disgusted but wisely staying silent about it. Now though, as he looked at the pizza, he wondered what was wrong with him when he realized that pizza with syrup didn't sound so bad anymore. He was in the middle of his second slice when Tifa walked into the kitchen and froze when she saw him pouring more syrup._

"_Cloud!" she gasped out, laughing at the sight he made. "What are you doing?"_

"_I had a craving and you ate it with so much pleasure that it made me want to try it too," he said, mouth a little full. "This is your fault Tifa," he accused. "I'm reduced to trying disgusting combinations of food because of you and the kid."_

_Tifa was still laughing at his words, but she stole the slice of pizza from his hand and ate it herself, eyes fluttering at the taste. "It's delicious," she said with a grin. She let out a snort of laughter when she saw Cloud reach into the box for another slice._

"_Not a word of this or the knitting to anyone, Tifa," said Cloud seriously._

_The brunette just grinned to herself. She didn't doubt that the topics would come up in future conversations with her girlfriends, but what Cloud didn't know wouldn't hurt him, she thought in glee._

…………

"_Bo-ring."_

"_Hush now, Denzel," said Tifa, who was sitting next to him, her stomach nice and round. Her due date was in a few days, and Cloud had wanted her to stay home, but she had insisted on accompanying them. They were all sitting in the auditorium of the nearby school and were watching Marlene as she participated in a play, recounting the story of Meteor and Sephiroth, since the anniversary be on the following day, which happened to be a Saturday. Avalanche would have its own party to celebrate their victory. Tifa had to smile at their mini versions. Marlene was playing her role, though Tifa realized that playing Aerith would've suited her better because of her brown hair, and the boy playing Cloud was nearly a head smaller than her. The boy who was playing Vincent looked hilarious in the red "cloak" around him, as did the boy playing Barret, who had a cardboard box that looked like a gun on his hand. But Yuffie was the cutest and by far the funniest. There was a tiny girl with hands full of shiny orbs, and a cardboard shuriken strapped to her back. She would run circles around little Vincent and would harass little Cid. They had gotten her character down perfectly._

_Denzel hadn't participated in the play, since Marlene was in a different class, but Tifa suspected that he was a little jealous because of it. She felt a little twinge in her stomach and tried to shift her position on the hard chair, but it didn't ease her discomfort. She wondered vaguely if she was going into labor, but shrugged it off and grinned when they came to the ending of the play. They hadn't shown the scene where Aerith had been murdered, but they had shown her under really bright lights, signifying her descent into the Lifestream. Tifa had almost cried. Finally, Cloud defeated Sephiroth, who had been played by a boy in an exaggeratedly long silver wig, and he had kissed little Tifa dramatically. Marlene ended up slapping the boy in the face for taking advantage of her, and Barret's cheer was heard over all the others._

_When the play was finally over, Marlene ran into Barret's arms and then hugged Tifa and Cloud too. "Did you like it?" she asked excitedly._

"_We loved it," said Tifa. "You played me so great, Marley, I think you were a better Tifa than I am!"_

"_What about you, Denzel?" asked Marlene expectantly. Somehow, Tifa had a feeling that his opinion was the only one that mattered._

_Denzel gave a nonchalant shrug, but then smiled. "It was great, Marlene," he said finally, blushing a little when she threw her arms around him tightly._

_Tifa smiled brightly and had Cloud help her up from the chair, since the weight of the baby was even heavier to her now. As soon as she stood though, there was the sound of something splashing and she felt her shoes grow warm. Denzel made a face. "Eww, that's gross!" he exclaimed, pointing to his shoes and to Cloud's boots._

"_Oh, my," said Tifa. "I think that my water just broke."_

"_What?" asked Cloud in alarm. "Are you sure? Didn't the doctor say that the due date was in a few weeks? Are you in pain?" he asked almost at once._

_Tifa gave him a look and shook her head. "Yes, I'm sure. The doctor also told us that the labor could start before or even after the due date. And yes, I'm in a little pain," she said as they began to walk towards the exit. Yuffie walked off to let one of the teachers know that the floor needed to be cleaned soon and then followed them. Tifa sighed as Cloud helped her into Barret's car. "I think I've been having contractions for a few hours now, but they were so spaced apart that I didn't even notice," she stated as everyone crammed into the car and they drove her towards the hospital._

_It was nearly ten hours later when Tifa was still enduring her contractions. Cloud refused to leave her side, even when she cursed him for not being able to get pregnant himself. Cloud knew she was in pain, so he refrained from making any comments. Besides, he knew what pain was, he had been living the last nine months with her after all. "The doctor said that it won't be long now. You just have about two centimeters to go, Tifa," he told her calmly._

"_Easy for you to say! Do you want an indication of how this feels? Yuffie, kick him in the jewels every few minutes," Tifa told the ninja, who was sitting next to her and reading through a parenting magazine._

_Yuffie looked up and grinned evilly. "With pleasure," she said, standing up. Cloud decided to leave the room for a moment. "Shera and Cid are on their way over, but they don't know if they'll get here before the baby is born."_

"_As long as they get here its fine," said Tifa, falling back against her pillows as another contraction passed. They were getting more frequent and to the point where she had little time to catch her breath. "Talk to me, Yuffie. Anything to get my mind off of the pain," she said, grabbing onto Yuffie's hand as another contraction started._

"_Well… I… uh, Vincent and I are going to start dating. He asked me out before the play, and he… he kissed me!" said Yuffie happily._

"_That's great, but Yuffie… I think you need to call the doctor now. I thought we had time for girl talk, but we don't. The baby is coming and I can feel it," Tifa said, sweating profusely and trying to relax against the pain._

_Yuffie nearly ran down the hall and almost knocked Cloud over while he was walking towards Tifa's room, sipping on a cup of water. Cloud walked into Tifa's room and found her gasping in pain. She looked a little pale and was out of breath. "It hurts so much," she whimpered. "What if something's wrong with the baby?"_

"_You can't think that way. Everything is going to be alright. It has to be alright," he murmured, taking her hand and kissing her damp brow. "Just hang in there. I'm here with you, okay?"_

_Tifa nodded and was relieved to see that Yuffie had brought the doctor with her, though it appeared that she had nearly bullied the doctor to come. "I'll wait outside!" the ninja said with a wince, noticing just how Tifa looked in pain, but thankfully not seeing exactly _where_ she was in pain._

_The doctor examined her and made a small noise. "It appears that this little one doesn't want to wait for us to even take you to another room," she said. She walked out the door and came back quickly with a nurse, who would assist with the labor. Tifa vaguely noticed that another woman came in with other things that would be used to clean the baby and weigh him or her. "Okay, we're ready. You just have to push as much as you can, every time I tell you to, okay Tifa?"_

_Tifa just nodded and didn't trust her voice to be intelligible while she was in so much pain. She looked at Cloud and their eyes met. He gave her a reassuring smile and held her hand just as tightly as she held his. When the doctor told her to push, she did so, and it was the most painful thing she had ever experienced. Forget Masamune nearly slicing her in half, or getting electrocuted by one of Sephiroth's remnants as they fought. Not even losing her virginity couldn't compare to the pain. She couldn't tell how long the doctor asked her to push, but she finall fell back against the bed and was relieved to hear the beautiful sound of a crying baby._

"_Congratulations. It's a healthy baby boy!" The doctor gave the baby to the nurse and she cleaned him up a bit before handing him over to Cloud, who was staring at the tiny creature as he kicked and screamed._

_Tifa smiled tiredly and realized something. "Imagine that, another Zack comes kicking and screaming into this world," she stated._

_Cloud smiled at the infant in his arms and remembered the time when Zack had told him that about himself. That his mother had told him that he had been a pain in the ass from the beginning and that he had arrived kicking and screaming into the world. Cloud had told Tifa the story once his memories—his real memories—began to resurface, and she hadn't forgotten. He looked down at the baby and was mesmerized when he saw tiny blue eyes open. The hair on his head was still dirty from the liquids that had protected him for nine long months, but Cloud could tell that he would be a dark-blond type. "He looks like you," said Tifa with a sleepy smile._

"_I was kind of hoping that he would look like you," Cloud admitted._

"_Well, let's hope he looks equally like us both," she said, and they nodded at each other in agreement before Cloud handed over their son and Tifa inspected the boy curiously. "He's perfect," she said softly, watching as he curled tiny fingers around one of her own with incredible strength. She looked into his blue eyes and fell in love with Cloud all over again._

_The swordsman kissed her gently and took in the tiny rounded features of their son. He wouldn't mind what was to come, even the sleepless nights. As long as he had Tifa there with him, everything would be alright._

……………………

"Cloud thought that I would keep the whole knitting thing to myself, so don't tell him that I told you girls," said Tifa to the other women, including Elmyra who had arrived with a delicious chocolate cake she had baked herself.

Yuffie shifted her son in her arms and grinned, giving him another spoonful of mashed potatoes with gravy. He had teeth already, but Rowan's favorite food happened to me the mushy potatoes. "Imagine Mr. I'm-too-cool-to-do-anything-that-isn't-manly. Why are they like that? I mean, I've made Vincent cook and sew buttons onto some of my older shorts. What's the big deal?" she asked.

"Cid wears a frilly apron whenever he cooks," Shera said with a giggle, peeling a banana for Sydney. "I have a picture of it hidden in my drawer of make-up. That's the only place he doesn't invade," she said brightly. All the women burst into laughs, even Elena, who had always been a little more reserved when it came to her own private life.

"I think it's your turn to tell us a little about your own pregnancy," said Tifa to the ex-Turk, smiling in encouragement.

Elena let out a sigh. "My pregnancy wasn't very happy. I'm surprised Kimi even knows how to smile, with the father she has and the things I went through as she grew inside me," she said softly. "But it wasn't all bad. Reno was there to help me through it all," she admitted.

"So…" Yuffie started. "Reno was more of a dad to your kid than her own father?"

The Turk looked at the baby in her arms and sighed a little. "I think so," she said reluctantly. "But he promised that things would change. So far, he's kept that promise. Just bring out the sweets and I'll gladly share with you," she said motioning towards the cake.

"But we haven't even eaten our food!" Tifa protested.

"What's the friggin' hold up?" Cid asked as he walked over to them. "Are you hens still yappin'?"

"Go screw yourself old man!" said Yuffie as her son reached for the old pilot. "Here, would you mind taking him to Vincent? Tell him Rowan just ate and that our food will be done shortly."

Cid took the boy and smirked when he was scrutinized by crimson colored eyes, set in Yuffie's face. He shrugged at the kid and walked off to hand him over to his father. "Why do I get the feeling that they were talkin' about us?" he asked the men, who had started a game of poker finally.

"Because they probably were," said Reeve.

Cloud just hoped that none of that talk had revolved around him knitting. Vincent looked at Tseng and wondered if the other man would be willing to share his experience, but Barret beat him to it when he had been about to voice his question. "What about you, Tseng? Why don't you share your story with us?"

"I've never been good at sharing," he said in a monotone that rivaled Vincent's. "Besides, I am not particularly proud of the way I acted while Elena was expecting," he said quietly.

The men just watched him and Cid broke the silence. "Would you prefer we heard it from our women and not from the main source?"

Tseng let out a sigh. He was trying to be civil, and he wanted to change. He had promised Elena and their daughter that he would try. Now the people that he had once been enemies with were offering him their hand in friendship and he didn't want to turn them down. He nodded finally. "I think I'm going to need a stiffer drink if I'm going to do this," Tseng stated.

Cid was more than happy to oblige as he poured some vodka straight from the bottle into the man's empty cup. "Start talkin'."

…

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…

…

…

…

Well, this one wasn't as humorous as I would've wanted, but I think it had more of a romantic feeling to it. The next will be more angsty, like I said, and then Cid and Shera's should go back to humor. I made like a transition sort of thing here, so the next chapter will start with the women talking to each other about Elena's pregnancy, and will probably end with the men talking to each other again. I know, what are the chances of them talking about the same thing at the same time? This is fanfiction, so it can happen, right? Anyway, I hope everyone liked this one, though I do think Vince and Yuffie's was a little better, but hey, I won't really know until you guys tell me—wink, wink.

I don't know if I'm a little off with when the baby kicks, but I do believe that some babies take longer than others. Movement can sometimes be felt months before the baby actually begins to kick, and this happened with my mom and my little brother. If I'm incorrect with when a baby kicks, let me know. I don't mind being corrected in any pregnancy facts, so don't be shy! Again, I hope you all enjoyed, and thanks a bunch for your reviews in the last chapter. Keep them coming and make me happy! See you all around!

Joey

P.S. Those of you following "Turn the Page," I will probably have an update on Thursday, so hang tight!


	3. Baby Turk

………………………………

**Daddy Blues**

…………………………

**Baby Turk**

………………………………

"So… you're telling us that he didn't participate in your pregnancy at all?" Shera asked as she held Kimi after Sydney had run off to pick flowers for her father. The little infant in her arms was a total cutie. She had inherited Tseng's coloring—including his skin and hair—and even the shape of his eyes, but the rest was Elena, which was the shape of her face and her smile.

Elena nodded and took a sip of her cool water. "I never knew how much Kimi would come to mean to me, but at first I wasn't too convinced that I wanted to have her. Tseng grew up with different customs, even when he was more of a Turk at heart. Wutai men don't believe in abortion and they will provide for the children even if they don't want them either."

Yuffie nodded. "It's a matter of honor, though there's no honor in not marrying the mother of your child," she said with a shake of her head, helping Tifa fix the plates of food for the men. Barret and Reeve walked over to help and took the plates that had already been piled with food.

"Wouldn't that count for Vincent as well?" Tifa asked as she flipped some steaks over the barbeque.

"Of course not. We've talked about marriage, but I don't think I'm up to that step just yet. And before you say anything, yes I know that having a baby together is an even bigger step, but I'm fine with it. Maybe I'm just not the marrying type, and neither is he," Yuffie said with a little shrug. "But I won't deny that it would be nice to be called Mrs. Valentine."

Tifa smiled and checked on her son, who she found was asleep under the shade of a tree on a thick blanket where Cloud had placed him. "I'm proud to be Mrs. Strife, but there are times when Cloud has his own bout of hormones," Tifa said with a laugh.

"I think its called testosterone," said Shera smartly. "But it is nice marrying the man you love, even when there are arguments about inane things."

"Well, I don't think I would accept, even now to marry Tseng," Elena put in.

"Don't you love him?" Shera asked softly.

Elena nodded. "I do, but we're still getting to know each other as a couple. It's just that… as a Turk, I trust him with my life, but as man, we still have a long way to go before I accept him as more than the father of my child."

The women nodded in comprehension. Then Yuffie noticed something. "Where does Kimi get her green eyes from?"

"My mother. She had green eyes, and my older sister inherited them as well. I got my father's eyes," Elena replied, smiling a little as she looked at her baby.

"So… about Reno, are you sure there's nothing there between the two of you?" the ninja questioned.

Elena smirked and shook her head. "I won't lie to you and tell you that I hadn't thought about it. More than once. He was there when Tseng wasn't and I was confused for a little while. Besides, I think that my hormones were making me think things that I shouldn't have. But I never voiced any of my thoughts," she trialed off.

…………………

_Elena sighed to herself as she made her way into her office. She was beyond exhausted and had barely been released from a meeting of their department of Turks. After meteor, their main base had been decimated, and their numbers had gone down, but various other Turks had survived because they had happened to be in other cities and towns. The meeting had been called by Rufus Shinra, who was still in the process of getting his company back on its feet. He had helped Reeve with the WRO, but he wanted to help in the restoration of the planet himself. Therefore he had called in a large number of Turks to ask them if they would join in his efforts, and change their ways from how they had been back when his father had been president, or if they would prefer leaving and finding a different job._

_Almost all of the younger Turks had stayed, while some of the senior Turks had decided to retire now, while they were given the chance. Elena had known that at the time she had joined the Turks, the only way to leave Shinra was if you were dead, so naturally those who wanted to left the life of a Turk behind. She also knew that you never forgot the things you had been ordered to do, proof of that was in Vincent Valentine. He would always be a Turk at heart. She shut off her computer and grabbed her keys and phone from where she had left them on the desk. As she walked out of the office, she nearly ran into Rude as he and Reno made their way to the elevator. "Where are you going, Laney?" he asked._

_She shrugged. "To get something to eat and then home to sleep all night and all day tomorrow. We finally have a day off and I'm going to use it to get my head back to normal. I've had a headache all week," she muttered._

_"Why don't you get the boss to help you with that pain?" asked Reno with a smirk._

_Elena gave him an annoyed look and pushed the button to call the elevator. "I would really appreciate it if you didn't talk about my personal life," she said darkly._

_"Well, it's not really personal when you have sex on a helicopter while you should be completing a mission," said Rude._

_"Wha—? How did you guys know that?" she hissed, glaring at them both. A thought popped into her head. "Do not tell me that there's a camera inside of the helicopter. Reno, if your voyeuristic kinks made you put a camera in there, I will kill you," she nearly snarled._

_"Well… it wasn't my idea!" he defended. "Ever since the thing with the remnants and then Deepground, the president wanted us to outfit the aircrafts with motion sensors and cameras. We were trying out a camera sensor on your chopper when we stumbled upon you and the boss… devouring each other," Reno said with a faint smirk._

_Elena flushed red. Though it wasn't a secret to her fellow Turks that she and Tseng had been sleeping with each other for a few months now, she didn't want them being spied on. "Do you have a copy of that video?"_

_"Ooh, kinky, Laney," said Reno._

_"I want to destroy it, not watch it," Elena growled. Besides, she had the memories of that night, and remembering how it had felt would be so much better than watching it from the outside._

_"Well, you'll be happy to know that the boss has it. Say… Laney, was it a trick of the video feed or do you have a very interesting tattoo on your as—"_

_"I don't think that's any of your business," a new voice interrupted as they stepped onto the elevator._

_Elena was seething in silence as they rode to the first floor and made for their cars. The tattoo was on her hip, not her ass. But putting that aside, now that more Turks were being brought in to Edge, they saw after the president in order to provide Tseng, Elena, Reno, and Rude some much needed breaks. That was how they all found themselves with a night and day off in common. "We'll see you at the bar," said Reno to Tseng, who was standing next to Elena._

_"They told you about the video?" Tseng asked._

_She nodded. "Did you get rid of it?"_

_"Yes, and though I did threaten Reno's health, I'm not exactly convinced that he didn't retain a copy," he replied, loosening his tie a little now that they weren't on the clock._

_"Tseng, about what happened in the chopper…"_

_"I told you," he interrupted, walking with her to her car. "If there are any… consequences, I will take responsibility."_

_Elena just glared at her feet. Well, what if she was the one who didn't want the responsibility? She knew that they were both at fault for having the urge during a mission, and because she hadn't been on the pill for about two months, since there hadn't been time for her to go see her gynecologist, but before that, Tseng had been the one to use protection. Well, now she would be sure that he carried something with him in his wallet just in case. She didn't even know if he carried a wallet. "We don't have a place in our lives for that kind of responsibility. If it does happen, what will you do?" she asked._

_"We'll get to that if it happens, Elena. If it doesn't, we have nothing to worry about except taking more precautions," he said, letting the problem wash away. Elena just let out an irritated sigh and got into her car, stopping when he tapped her window. "Will you be joining us for drinks?" he asked her as the glass lowered._

_"Yeah. I'll see you there," she said before driving off. She didn't know why she was angry. Maybe it was because she didn't want any children at the moment. She was too young, and she didn't want to be a parent alone. She also didn't want to get married yet, and she hoped that if she did turn up pregnant, that it wouldn't be Tseng's solution to the problem._

_…………_

_It wasn't until nearly two months later when the signs started. First the nausea at Reno's usual choice of foods—which she only usually turned her nose at—then the dizzy spells, and then she realized that she was late and hadn't even realized it. She visited her doctor on her day off and nearly died of terror when the doctor had returned with the test results. Positive. For the first time in her life, she broke into sobs in front of another person. All her usual crying was done in private, though the occasions hadn't been many, but she just hadn't known what to do at the moment._

_After composing herself as much as she could, she had gone to their HQ and had barged right into Tseng's office as he spoke on the phone with fellow Turks about their next mission. She nearly threw the results in his face, but instead slammed them onto the desk, angry and beyond scared. "It's positive," she said simply._

_Tseng stared at her and didn't comment on her lack of respect for her superior. He had a feeling that she would physically hurt him if he brought that up now. At the moment, she was the woman who had turned into his lover, not the Turk that worked with him and was of a lower rank than his. "You're absolutely sure."_

_Elena nodded and crossed her arms over her chest. "I went to my doctor today. There are no doubts," she said, breathing a little quick. She was on the verge of a panic attack and seeing the lack of reaction on Tseng's face wasn't helping. "I don't need this right now, Tseng. I don't have room in this life for a baby. It's just not something I want to do. Not now, or maybe ever!"_

_Tseng gave her a cool look. "Would you feel more comfortable getting an abortion?" he asked her in a steely tone._

_His words forced her into silence and she didn't know what to say for a moment. Her mother had always told her that abortion was murder, and she had grown up in her childhood years with those words. She was a Turk, she had done things she wasn't proud of, but killing an innocent being that hadn't asked to come along, even when she felt she wasn't ready… "No… I wouldn't… I don't think I would be able to go through with that," she said quietly._

_"Then we will deal with this one step at a time. I will provide anything the child and you may need. If you wish to stop working, you can do so as well," Tseng said as he began to sort out some papers._

_Something inside of Elena ignited her anger at his words. Why was he treating their problem like a business transaction? She was pregnant for crying out loud! Did the man have no heart? Well, she hadn't wanted the baby to begin with, so she wasn't the best person to point fingers, but she was the mother, the affected one! "I'm not going to stop working. I will stay as long as I can," she said, taking a few breaths._

_"That is fine. But from now on, you will not be going on any missions. You will stay here at the office and handle any paperwork president Shinra may need."_

_"But—"_

_"It's for your safety Elena. If I let you go out on missions, it would by like sending you off to get an abortion when you consider all the dangers," he said calmly, noticing that her hands had tightened into fists. "I know that this is a big change for us both, but we can handle it. We are Turks after all."_

_Elena bit her lip. "What's going to happen to us? You and me?"_

_"Do you wish for us to remain together?" he asked._

_The blonde woman just looked at him incredulously. "Did you expect us to not be together now that I am pregnant?" She pinched the bridge of her nose and just turned to walk out. Why did the man have to be a friggin' heartless Turk? Geez, she wasn't expecting him to cheer and be in awe that she was having their baby, but the least he could do was not be so cold when he referred to them and their child. Elena was confused. How did a person raise a child when they were only lovers?_

_Tseng just watched her go and sat back in his chair. What was she expecting from him? They were not in any type of relationship. Was she expecting more now that she would have their child? He wasn't happy, but he wasn't angry. He was in neutral territory. The child was there and there was nothing more they could do but raise it to become another Turk. Then a thought occurred to him. Did he really want a child of his to grow up to become another ruthless and heartless Shinra employee? Granted, things were changing with president Rufus as their boss, but he didn't want his life for his and Elena's baby. He let out a sigh and returned to his paperwork. He would provide all that was necessary and then do his best._

_…………………_

_On her first actual appointment for her pregnancy, she knew better than to even ask Tseng if he would accompany her. After all, he was one of the senior Turks who was actually in charge in their department and he was always busy. She put her work away and stood, walking off towards the elevator. As always, she was intercepted by Reno, whose office was the closest to the elevator. He always seemed to know who was coming and who was going. "Where are you going rookie?"_

_Elena gave him an annoyed look. "I stopped being a rookie years ago," she said flatly. "What do you want Reno? I'm on my way out."_

_"You know, there are some curious rumors going around on every floor that I find myself on. The president's secretary told me that she heard from some other Turk that you're knocked up? Are you really? Did Tseng really do that to you?" Reno asked in interest._

_Her annoyed look turned to a glare. "It's true," she said before turning to leave._

_"What?!" Reno hollered, catching up to her. "I thought they were just rumors!" he exclaimed._

_"Well, they're not. Just leave me alone, will you? I have a doctor's appointment to get to and I hate being late," she said bitterly._

_Reno gave her a critical look-over. "Well… isn't the boss man going with you? It's his bun in the oven after all."_

_Elena shook her head and felt the tell-tale sign of tears coming to her eyes. She didn't want to cry. Not in front of Reno, and especially not in a place that was filled with fellow "bad-ass" Turks who would never be caught crying. Besides, she had a reputation to uphold, even when everyone in their work place seemed to know that she was pregnant. "Tseng is too busy to bother. Besides, I didn't even tell him about the appointment," she said with a small shrug._

_Reno looked her over and noticed the sad look in her eyes as she spoke about Tseng. He knew that the boss was usually a block of ice with anything and everything, but this was his kid, and Elena was a good woman. He made a decision. "Give me a few secs and I'm gonna get Rude to cover for me."_

_"What?" Elena asked quizzically. "Why?"_

_"Because I'm going with you. This is your first appointment for the kid, right? You shouldn't go alone," he said before jogging off to inform his partner about their plans._

_Elena watched him go with a thoughtful frown. Though Reno was usually a dirty man-whore, he had his moments of being a good friend. She really was thankful that she wouldn't be going alone to her appointment. When he returned, she offered him a smile and they left together. Once she was sitting in the room of the OB-GYN, she began to feel a little embarrassed that Reno was there and that she was dressed in nothing but a flimsy white gown. "Are you sure you want to be in here with me?" she asked him._

_Reno shrugged. "Hey, if you want me to wait outside, I'll do it. All you gotta do is say it," he said with a wink._

_Before either of them could say anything more, the doctor walked in with a smile on her face. "Good morning. I see you've brought the daddy-to-be, with you, Ms. Elena," she said with a smile. "It's good to meet you both."_

_"It's nice to meet you too. Just call me Elena, please," she said with a grimace. "He's a friend. The father… couldn't come today," she said with a sigh._

_"Well, hopefully he will be able to make it to the next appointment, right?" she asked, trying for positive, but it faded a little when she saw the two share a look. "Let's just get started. We will check on the heartbeat first, and then we'll have the gentleman step out while we check other things," she said, placing a large piece of white cloth over her lap and then pushing up her gown to expose the still flat skin of Elena's stomach._

_Reno's eyes were drawn to Elena's hip where he could clearly see the tattoo of a few ancient Wutai symbols. "Hey, Laney, what does your tattoo mean?" he asked with a smirk._

_Elena glared at him and pulled the material of the sheet higher, hiding the mark from view. "Stop looking at my ass before I tattoo my foot on yours," she hissed. They fell silent again at the rapid sound coming from the monitor, where a dark image was coming into view as well._

_"Is that the heartbeat?" Reno asked, eyes wide._

_The doctor smiled and nodded. "From what I can see right now, the baby is healthy and growing at a normal rate. Eleventh week mark. Have you been drinking your vitamins and eating properly?"_

_Elena nodded and felt her lips quirking into a small smile at the sight of her baby. Not to mention that the look on Reno's amazed face was very amusing. "That's seriously a little person in there?" he asked in awe._

_The doctor smiled and printed a picture for Elena. "Yes. And if Elena takes care of herself, she will have a healthy baby soon."_

_"Can you tell if it's a boy or a girl?" asked Reno, interested._

_"Not yet. It's still too soon, but I believe that by her next ultrasound, we'll be able to see what she's having. Are you sure you're not the father?" she asked jokingly._

_Elena let out a small laugh. "Can you imagine a baby with that hair?" she asked the doctor. They had a laugh at Reno's expense, while he glared at them both._

_"I'll wait outside," Reno grumbled, leaving the two women to continue the check up._

_"He seems like a good friend," the doctor commented._

_The blonde sighed and nodded. "He is, though he is quite crude when he wants to be. At least he was a good friend to me today and he didn't let me come alone."_

_The other woman smiled. "Let's check a few more things and then we can finish."_

_Elena sighed to herself and sat back, wondering what Tseng would've said had she really convinced him to come. She knew it hadn't been fair of her to assume that he wouldn't accompany her, but she knew who Tseng was, and despite it all, she had gotten involved with him. She couldn't say that she hadn't known who she was getting involved with, and she realized—not for the first time—that anything having to do with the pregnancy would most likely fall completely on her, with no participation from Tseng at all. She felt the tears burn at her eyes again but simply focused her eyes on the frozen image of her baby on the screen of the ultrasound machine. There was a person living inside of her now, and even though she had been trained by the Turks to be a ruthless killer even before she had been allowed to legally drink, she still had a heart. A heart that she now realized had always wondered if she would get a chance to be a mother. Maybe things wouldn't be so bad?_

_…………………_

_"If I were you, I'd blow this up to poster size and hang it on the wall," said Reno as they walked back onto their floor at work. In his hand, he was holding the picture of the tiny baby that looked more like a bizarre form of a peanut._

_"Yes Reno, since I've always fancied the idea of people looking at my uterus blown up in proportion," she said with a smirk. Rude intercepted them and motioned over his shoulder. Elena followed where he was pointing and saw that Tseng was behind him, a cool look on his face._

_"May I ask, where the two of you have been when you're supposed to be working?" he asked dryly._

_"We were at my doctor's appointment," Elena replied, her tone matching his._

_"And why is it that you failed to notify me about the appointment? I truly doubt Reno's assistance was necessary," said Tseng._

_Reno looked from his boss to the blonde and wondered if they would have some type of argument right there in the middle of the hall. Judging by the look on Elena's face, an argument was sure to break out sooner or later. "He was there for moral support. He went in your place," she said softly._

_"Maybe if you had said something—"_

_Elena interrupted him. "Would you have gone to the doctor's appointment with me?" she asked instead._

_Tseng looked at her, unperturbed. "I expect to be notified the next time you have to leave the office," he said before turning and walking away._

_She stared after him and didn't know whether to scream or cry out of sheer frustration. Didn't he care even a little about their baby? It was true that she had been less than happy to know that she was pregnant, but hearing the heartbeat, and watching the barely forming person on that screen had been enough to make her thoughts change. But Tseng, he had gone about it all with the same sense of detachment he had for everything else around him. It was even a miracle that he had ever allowed himself to express any form of desire or lust for her in the first place._

_"Laney?" Reno murmured, him and Rude having been privy to the words the two had shared._

_Elena shook her head and managed a small smile. "I'm fine Reno. Just feeling a little nauseous. Thanks for coming with me, and I'm sorry if Tseng gives you anymore grief," she said before walking off to her office, where she would be able to cry in solitude._

_Reno sighed and looked at Rude. "I don't think Tseng and Laney having a kid is such a good idea," he muttered._

_Rude shrugged one shoulder. "The kid is there already. There's nothing else that can be done now," he said. "If Tseng won't help her with the problem, I think it is up to us."_

_The red-head patted his shoulder and nodded. "I think that's the smartest idea you've ever had, partner. We'll be the kid's dads whenever he needs us to be or whenever the boss won't help," he muttered the last part._

_………………_

_The next three months were filled of nothing but pregnancy pains for Elena, and no one else saw her go through them but Reno and Rude. Tseng was doing his own thing, setting money into an account he had opened for whatever she could need, but Elena had not touched a single gil in the account. Money wasn't everything, and she was beginning to wonder if she would raise her child on her own. Maybe it would've been best if she had left the Turk while she could and moved away to raise the child on her own. She was basically doing it now, but it hurt so much more when she realized that Tseng really didn't have any interest in participating in anything that had to do with her or the baby._

_She usually went to her appointments alone, but there had been a few occasions in which Reno tagged along despite her protests and reminders that Tseng would reprimand him for leaving without notice. Reno didn't seem to care and he tried to help as much as he could. As she hauled her heavy self out of her chair to answer the door, Elena realized that she really couldn't have gone on any missions in the state she was in, even at five months. When she opened the door, she grinned when she saw that Reno was on the other side, holding a bucket of fried chicken and a plastic bag with other foods for them._

_"I come bearing fried gifts," he said with a smirk. "I think you're rubbing off on me Laney, because for the past two nights, I've been craving fried chicken with mashed potatoes and biscuits," he said, walking into her apartment and setting down the food on the table._

_"I think you read my mind," said Elena, mouth watering at the wonderful smells coming from the bucket and the bag. "I've had the same craving for the last few days too!"_

_"Well, dig in!" Reno said, taking out the various foods and piling great portions onto their plates._

_Once they were both quite satisfied and could stuff their faces no longer, Reno sat back to watch Elena as she rubbed her stomach. He did feel sorry that she was going through all her new experiences on her own, but he was proud that she had the strength to do it. She had come a long way from the annoying rookie she had been all those years ago. He just got the feeling that the kid would change everything even more once he or she was born. Maybe… Elena would have to leave the Turks. "Are you going to leave us Laney?" he asked quietly._

_Elena looked at him and then at her stomach, which had grown quite a bit in the last three months. It would've been so much easier to fall for a guy like Reno. Though he was a man-whore at times, he was a good friend, and he made her feel special when she really needed it. Okay, she was being too hormonal and having mixed feelings on Reno was freaking her out. He was her friend. Nothing more. "I don't know, Reno. I think I'll have to. It's become apparent that Tseng won't participate in this for more than providing gil or anything material the baby will need, so it will be up to me to raise him or her as best I can."_

_"You know you can count on me, right?" he asked, grasping her hand and giving it a squeeze. He winked when she managed a smile and nodded. "Now, I brought this for dessert," he said, pulling out a last box from the bag._

_Elena looked at it and wanted to weep in happiness, or maybe it was all the crazy hormones again. "Is that a fudge cake?" she asked._

_Reno nodded and opened the box, cutting it in half and taking his own piece. "Laney, are you sure that men can't get pregnant? I mean, this past week we've been craving the same things."_

_"You think you're pregnant?" she laughed. "Who's the father? Rude?"_

_"Ha, ha. Of course it's not Rude. I don't really like the idea of having bald kids," he said with a snicker, causing Elena to burst into laughter. She was still laughing when there was a knock at her door and he stood to get it. He was a little surprised to see Tseng at the door. "Hey boss man, here to see Laney or the kid?"_

_"Seeing as they're both in the same place, I guess I'm here to see them both," said Tseng in an annoyed tone. "What are you doing here Reno?" he asked, noting that Elena's eyes were still shining with mirth. He hadn't seen her look that way in a long time. Since she had gotten pregnant at least, and he was reminded of why he had always wanted her in the first place. She was a beautiful woman._

_"I'm just here bringing Laney some dinner. Someone has to take care of her, and that's me," he said with a small shrug._

_Elena stood and walked with Tseng into the kitchen. "What are you doing here?" she asked him._

_"What, I can't visit you anymore?" he asked, tone flat._

_"It's just that… you haven't been by in the last month. We only see each other at work. Why are you in the mood to visit now?" she asked. She hadn't intended to sound like a resentful girlfriend—especially since she and Tseng didn't have a real relationship to begin with—but she couldn't help herself. Especially after Reno had been so much help and without asking for anything in return._

_"I noticed that you didn't go into work today," he said in a low tone._

_"Are you here to reprimand me then? Have I used up all of my sick days?" she asked snidely. "In case you forgot, I had an appointment today. You do remember that I asked you to come with me right?"_

_"Elena… I couldn't get out of the meeting. I didn't miss it because I didn't want to go. You know that," Tseng said, pouring himself a glass of water._

_"I told you about this appointment days ago. You had time to clear this day from your schedule," Elena said darkly. "Look, if you don't want to be a part of this, just tell me. I keep getting my hopes up that maybe you'll pay more attention to our child, but you just handle this like any other Turk business. Just tell me now if you have no interest in raising this baby with me. I'll do it on my own," she said seriously._

_Tseng stayed silent. He knew he hadn't participated much from the beginning, but it was because he didn't know how to handle having any type of family. For so many years the Turks and Shinra had been his life. A man like him just couldn't change in a matter of weeks. He still didn't know what to feel when it concerned the fact that he would soon be a father. He had never contemplated the idea when he was young, and he certainly hadn't done it now. He had tried to keep Elena's pregnancy at the back of his mind as much as he could. "Maybe you should send Reno on his way. I don't think I want him listening to this conversation," he said._

_"But I'm not!" Reno called from the living room._

_Elena sighed and shook her head. "You could've given me an answer regardless of who was listening," she muttered, walking off to talk to Reno. She gave him a small smile and he understood. "I'm sorry for doing this after you brought dinner."_

_Reno shook his head. "Don't worry about it, Laney. If you manage to knock some sense into that thick head of Tseng's I won't mind," he muttered._

_She nodded, but as they walked together towards the door, she gasped and touched her stomach. "Feel this!" she said in amazement. "I think the baby is kicking for the first time!" she said, grabbing his hand and pressing it to the spot where she could feel the gentle kicks._

_The red-head grinned and rubbed her stomach, feeling the flutter of the baby within. "Barely growing and already a Turk. That's my kick he's practicing," he said._

_Elena shook her head and let go of his hand, her smile dying when she felt Tseng's gaze on her. "Maybe you should go," she said._

_Reno nodded and placed and ear to her stomach. "If you can hear me, try to convince your pop that you need him too. Uncle Reno can only do so much. You need your dad with you too," he said, eyes on the dark-haired Turk._

_Tseng watched him go and approached Elena as she shut the door. "It seems you don't need me after all."_

_Elena felt like slapping him. Instead, she took his hand and placed it where the baby was still kicking. "I understand that you've been a Turk for so long, that you've begun to ignore all the basic things a human needs to survive except eating, sleeping, and fucking," she said crudely. "But I wasn't too screwed up by Shinra, and I know how important it is to have a family. Either you're here for us, or someone else will be. Make a decision now, Tseng, before it's too late."_

_"If you know how I am, I don't think it's fair for you to give me an ultimatum. Either I'm with you, doing something that I don't feel capable of doing correctly, or I lose you both. What would you do in my place?" he asked her._

_"I would try to do my best. I would try to change," Elena said seriously. "This baby is half yours, half mine. Though we didn't ask for him or her, he didn't ask to come into this world either. At least… tell me that you're going to try," she nearly pleaded. "I won't ask you to change, but it would be best if you tried to be a part of this. Maybe you'll see that you can be a good father. You won't really know until you try, right?"_

_Tseng watched her, noting how pretty she looked, even with the ever growing stomach of hers. Her hair was like a shining fall of gold around a pale face, and big brown eyes. If their child looked half like Elena, he realized that he or she would be beautiful. He wanted to care. He did care, but he was used to keeping people and things he could potentially care for at a distance. It had been his defense mechanism for years now. He voiced a question that made him feel weak, but that he realized was necessary. "What if I fail and you end up hating me?"_

_Elena shook her head and entwined her fingers with his. Before her pregnancy, she never would've risked showing Tseng so much emotion on her part. But things were so much different now. "If you don't try, I'll hate you even more," she said softly._

_…………………_

_The next two months saw more of Elena's cravings and moodswings. There were times when she felt like crying for no particular reason, and Rude was usually the one around for it. It was quite embarrassing, especially when Tseng had walked in on her bawling on the bald man's shoulder more than once. During lunch time, her fellow female Turks usually congregated around her to feel on her baby. Many of them didn't want children, but that didn't stop them from forgetting their training and turning into females the day some of them got together to give her some gifts. Of course, they wouldn't call it a baby shower because being a Turk meant that they had to keep up their reputations, but Elena had been thankful anyway._

_"Have you found a name for the baby yet?" one woman asked._

_"Do you know what you're having?"_

_"Are you sure Reno isn't the father? I saw him eating bizarre mixtures of food the other day, and he mentioned something about cravings," another commented._

_Elena rolled her eyes at the last one. Of course Reno wasn't the father. She had never been intimate with him, despite the rumors that had been circling months before about her, Tseng, Reno, and Rude. People needed to get their minds out of the gutter. She thanked the women as they walked off, their lunch breaks over, and she turned and saw as Reno walked in with Rude. "Ugh… Laney, why am I feeling so nauseous?" he asked with a grimace._

_"Maybe because you ate off of my spoon this morning?" Elena said, taking a look at the tiny clothing her fellow Turks had given her. "I don't know if sharing spit has anything to do with it, but maybe nausea is included in the sympathy pains."_

_"I can't help it that your yogurt with slices of oranges looked so good. This is your entire fault, Laney. You're the pregnant one, and I suffer for it. How come the boss man hasn't felt any pains?" Reno asked._

_Tseng walked in on Reno's question. "Because you're really the father. Haven't you heard the rumors?" he asked with a faint smirk._

_Elena scoffed and rubbed at her stomach, her blazer almost stretched to its limit. "Please, my kid would come out speaking cheesy pick up lines," she said, giving Reno a cool look._

_Tseng just shook his head and allowed himself an amused expression. "Report to the briefing room. Your next mission will be explained in a few minutes," he said to the men. He didn't miss the look on Elena's face as the two left the room. "It's too dangerous for you to go with us. Even to fly the chopper," he said._

_Elena just sighed and nodded. "I know. I just… miss working in the field. These have been the longest nine months of my life," she replied, standing and throwing away the container that had held the clam chowder soup she had had for lunch. "I can't drink coffee, liquor, or any other drink with caffeine. It's getting to the point where I can't even see my own feet now, and it won't be long before Reno starts to tease me because I'm waddling."_

_Tseng would've laughed if he hadn't been so used to schooling his expression into nothing. He felt the amusement, but he had long lost the ability to show it. Working for Shinra did a real number on people and their abilities to show any type of emotion. Some part of him mourned that fact, but another had gotten used to it years ago. He was really trying to be a part in this new experience, but the truth was that Elena was going through it all alone and there really wasn't much he could do. He watched her as she sighed, looking faintly tired. "Maybe you should start thinking about taking the maternity leave."_

_Elena scoffed. "And what am I going to do all day at home? I've cleaned everything from top to bottom, but I just don't know where I'm going to put our kid once he or she is born," she muttered._

_Tseng let out a small sigh and wondered if he had made the right decision. As it was, things between him and Elena weren't at its best, but maybe the surprise he had for her would help in some way. He took out a key from his pocket and handed it over. "Maybe you should start thinking about moving in," he said evenly._

_The blonde woman looked at the key in his hands and then at him, her eyes wide in shock. "What?" was all she could get out._

_"I know this is a big step for the both of us, but if we—I—don't take risks, then we'll never know if we can indeed work as a parent," he said, reaching into his coat and drawing out a yellow rose and handing it over as well. "Think on it. You don't have to make a decision now, but the offer stands." He walked out of her office and left her behind in a shocked silence._

_Elena stared after him and then looked at the rose she held in her hand. She wondered if hell had frozen over and then gazed at the key. She sat down and wondered what would be the best course of action._

_……………_

_Elena, Reno, and Rude, stood in completely unfamiliar territory. "How am I supposed to know what a baby needs?" asked the blonde with a sigh._

_"Do we have to do this now?" asked Reno, feeling a little on edge with all of the pinks and blues, and strange stuffed animals surrounding him._

_"Well, the baby is due in a few weeks and I have nothing for her," she muttered._

_"Her?" asked Rude. "You've known what the baby is all this time?"_

_Elena smiled and nodded. "I wanted to keep it a secret, but since Tseng asked me to use the money that he had been putting into the account, I guess it's time that her sex is known. We're… we're moving in together," she said with a small smile. "I still haven't packed my things, but Tseng has a room cleared for it to be the baby's."_

_"So he's changing?" asked Rude._

_Elena shrugged. "I'm not getting my hopes up. I don't know if this will be the best step to take either way. We just have to wait and see," she said, staring at the various warm blankets and baby clothes._

_"May I help you with something?" asked a woman from behind them._

_All three turned to look at her and Elena shrugged a little. "I think so. This is my first baby and I really don't have a good idea as to what she may need."_

_"You're having a girl?" she asked with a smile._

_Reno patted his fellow Turk on the stomach, which was by now a very big size. "She's our baby."_

_"Oh, so you're the father then? Congratulations!" the woman said brightly._

_Elena rolled her eyes. Why was everyone assuming the Reno was the father of her baby? She let out a sigh and saw Reno smirk. "Actually, we're waiting to see who the baby looks like when she's born. We have our suspicions, but we're not sure if it's me or Rude who's the father," he replied. "It's kinda difficult to know certain things when we're three instead of two, you know."_

_Elena felt her cheeks color at the implications and she heard Rude clear his throat. The woman was looking at all three of them with wide eyes and she stuttered for the next five minutes as she explained the basic necessities of a baby. "I can't believe that you said that to her. I'm never coming to this store again," Elena hissed as they stopped by a hot dog vendor and bought two dogs each._

_"Well, you got everything you needed for our girl right?" Reno asked. The furniture and the many other things Elena had bought would be delivered to Tseng's apartment in a week._

_"Yes. At least I think so. What else can a baby need?"_

_"What about that thing that you put under their clothes, where the smelly stuff goes," said Reno."_

_"I think you mean a diaper," said Rude._

_Elena thought about it and nodded. "Yeah, we've got diapers already. I guess all that's left is to start packing my stuff. Will you two help me out? I can't carry anything even remotely heavy."_

_"We're there," said Rude. "And… we're happy that the boss is trying to change. We—I have known him for years and you don't have any idea how much he needs this," he said._

_Just as much as she did, probably, Elena mused. "Thanks guys. You've both been a great amount of help, especially when things with Tseng weren't working. I've really enjoyed discussing 'What to Expect When You're Expecting,' with you Rude." Reno almost choked on his hotdog until Elena whacked him on the back. "Don't even say anything. I can't discuss books with you because sometimes I doubt you even know how to read."_

_"I know how to read the indications on the condom box," said Reno, wiggling his eyebrows._

_Elena slapped him on the back of the head and walked ahead with Rude. "Keep up with the vulgarity and I will ban you from being my daughter's uncle," she called._

_"Aww… Laney!" he whined, running to catch up to them._

_……………_

_Elena clicked the light on and winced when she felt pain radiating from her stomach. She let out a breath and reached for her phone. Though the past week Reno and Rude had helped her pack her things, they hadn't gotten much done, and she had decided to stay until after the baby was due. There was a downside to being alone and pregnant. Tseng and her fellow Turks lived at a distance away. She dialed the number and waited. "Elena?" asked Tseng automatically._

_"I think I'm going into labor," she said softly._

_"I'll be there soon. Be ready," he said before clicking off._

_"Thanks for asking, we're okay," Elena muttered as she put the phone back on the receiver and tried to stand. She didn't know if it was supposed to hurt so much, even more than what some women had described, but she would endure it. Besides, she had felt far more painful things. An echo of her own scream inside a structure in the Forgotten Capital flashed through her head, followed by the image of cool yellow-green eyes. She shook herself out of memories she had long ago left behind and got dressed, taking a few breaths with the pain. Now was not the time to go about remembering things that still made her healed scars ache. Her phone rang and she grabbed it quickly. "Hello?" she asked, voice a little breathy._

_"Laney? I'm kind of in pain and Rude said something weird to me. Something about sympathy pains?" Reno asked on the other side._

_Elena managed a laugh. "I don't think that's possible, but I have read up on it," she replied. "Besides, you may be on to something. I think I'm in labor," she said._

_"What?! Are you okay? Do you need to get to the hospital?" he asked quickly._

_"I think you need to get to the hospital soon, since it sounds like you're going into labor too," said Elena, laughing through the pain._

_"That's not funny, Laney."_

_"Maybe not, but I'm in pain and I need a distraction. Don't worry about me, Tseng is on his way to pick me up," she replied. "Call Rude and meet us there, okay?"_

_"Yeah," said Reno. "You better have this kid quick," he muttered before they hung up._

_……………_

_Tseng paced. He had opted not to be present for the labor because he didn't deserve it. Besides, Elena hadn't wanted him there with her either. Some part of him, which he had thought had been long dead, was disappointed that he wouldn't get to see his own child being born. Then another part, and he was loathe to admit it, was agreeing with Reno on how creepy it would be to watch Elena push a kid out of a place that shouldn't have been made for child birthing in the first place. He had been awake for hours now, and he didn't know what to do with himself. He was tired, and he hadn't slept much, and there was worry eating at his gut, since the doctor hadn't come out for hours now._

_He was a Turk. He needed to act like one. But wasn't that what Elena had argued with him all those months ago? That he needed to change for the sake of their child? These last few months had served to make him think on what type of life changing a child would do in his life. There would be someone more who needed his protection and that could potentially be used to hurt him if any new enemies rose in the world. He didn't fancy the idea of someone hurting either Elena or the child. All those doubts had begun to circle his head and hadn't stopped, even when he had asked Elena to move in with him. He was just thankful that he lived in a secure area and that both he and Elena would know how to protect the baby in any case._

_He looked up when the doctor approached him with a smile. "We had a few complications, but everything turned out good in the end."_

_Tseng felt his eyes go cold. "What kind of complications?" he asked in a deathly quiet voice._

_"The baby was in the wrong position to begin with, so we had to perform a C-section on Elena," she said._

_"Why wasn't I notified?" His anger was a palpable thing, and the doctor took a step back subconsciously._

_"Because we only needed Elena's authorization to perform the surgery. With all due respect, if she were your wife, we would've come out to notify you, but she made the decision and we took care of your daughter. They are both okay and Elena will be placed in her room soon," said the doctor before walking away._

_"Congratulations," said Reno, coming to stand next to him. "You're the father of a baby girl. Be prepared to live with pink and fluffiness for the next eighteen to twenty years."_

_By the time they were able to see Elena, she had been placed in her own room, and it was already dark. She was out because of the painkillers and the nurse had brought the baby over so that he could look at her. Reno and Rude were standing guard outside, giving him a moment a lone with Elena and the child. Tseng stared down at the pink bundle and felt a smirk quirk his lips as he watched her suck her thumb. She had hair as dark as his, but he could see that she would look like Elena. It was unbelievable that something so tiny and innocent had come from someone like him. He didn't deserve her, or Elena. The baby opened her eyes and he was intrigued to see that she had eyes the color of jades. He reached a hand down and ran it over a cheek, his heart lightening a little when she opened her mouth and tried to latch onto it. He pulled it back and frowned when she began to make tiny noises. Tseng looked towards Elena and saw that she was watching him, eyes half-lidded. "Hold her." Tseng looked at the baby as she began to cry. "She won't break. Just hold her head and make sure you don't drop her."_

_Tseng hesitantly picked the newborn up and pulled her against his chest, noting that she quieted only a little. "Why… is she crying?"_

_"I think she's hungry, but I'm kind of in pain here. The nurses will have to feed her." Elena paused. "What do you want to name her?"_

_"Didn't you have a name picked out already?" he asked, his nose taking in the scent of powder and baby._

_"I have one just in case, but… is there any name that has significance for you?"_

_Tseng thought hard. Someone who had mattered to him… suddenly the scent of fresh baked cookies, the feel of soft hands cleaning at his scraped knees, a gentle voice singing him to sleep in ancient Wutai came to mind. "Kimi."_

_"Who was Kimi?" Elena murmured._

_"My mother," he said, not meeting her eyes._

_"That's a beautiful name," she replied. "And we'll be good parents if we work on it."_

_Tseng nodded and looked down at the girl in his arms. He had refused to be wrapped up in the fingers of any woman. He had never allowed himself to feel more than a fleeting attraction for any woman. Except Elena. She was everything he had never wanted. She was outspoken, sometimes loud, she needed to reprimanded like a child from time to time, but she had no qualms when it came to touching him. She was guilty of many things, but not nearly as many as he was, but she was still too good for him. Now she had given birth to his child, and he needed to be better for her. She deserved better from him. Both Elena and Kimi. He would protect them from any danger and would lay down his life for them. Without even realizing it, both woman and girl had already wrapped him around their little fingers._

……………

"Has he been better?" asked Tifa.

Elena nodded. "Kimi changed everything, and I'm glad she did. He feeds her, bathes her, changes her diaper. He doesn't look like the type to baby his daughter, but he does," she said with a small smile.

Shera looked down at the baby in her arms as she yawned. "I can't wait to tell Cid my news."

"Oh, Shera. I think we need to wait for him to be a little bit more drunk," said Yuffie.

"He doesn't get as drunk as he used to. Not with Sydney around. He's become better too," Shera said with a smile. "How is Tseng with _you_?" she asked the blonde.

"When Reno and Rude babysit, Tseng takes me out to dinner, or to a movie. He's loosening up little by little. I don't want to get my hopes up, only to have him bash them down, but I'm proud of how he has changed, no matter how little," she said quietly. Elena looked up when she saw Tseng approaching them. He said nothing, but took his daughter from Shera, since the infant had begun to cry, ready for her nap. His eyes met hers and she swallowed a little, wondering what it meant when he looked at her that way. His eyes darted to a distance away and she stood to follow as he began to walk away.

Yuffie, Tifa, and Shera watched them go and smiled at each other. "I think Turks deserve a chance at happiness," said Mrs. Highwind.

The ninja nodded and looked at her very own Turk, who was sitting under a tree, one leg drawn up while he watched their son walking around on his own. The boy handed over anything and everything he encountered in his path, but at least he had stopped trying to taste everything too. She snickered to herself when he encountered a worm and handed it over to Vincent. That was her boy. Unafraid of anything; he would grow up to be the pride of her clan. Now, to eavesdrop on two Turks without getting shot…

Elena gave Tseng a questioning look as he looked from her to Kimi, who had calmed in his arms. "What were you talking about with the women? You looked sad," he said.

She shook her head and gave him a small smile. "They were sharing stories about their men, how they behaved during their pregnancies," Elena said, running a hand over Kimi's shining, black hair.

Tseng grunted. "I hope you didn't enlighten them about my shortcomings during _your _pregnancy."

"I don't have many fond memories concerning you," she admitted.

Tseng looked away from her and nodded. "You always knew I wasn't a good man. I can't blame Shinra for that. Most of it was my doing," he admitted.

Elena reached up and touched his jaw, turning him to look at her. "But you're different now, thanks to Kimi and that's enough for me," she said softly.

Tseng had to admire how much she had changed with the birth of their daughter as well. "I promise to try my best, and you know that I rarely promise anything."

"Yes, I do know, and you really have no idea how happy it makes me. You're a good father, Tseng," she said with a bright smile, standing on the tips of her toes and pressing a light kiss to his lips. "I have to go hear stories of Cid and Shera, will you be okay with Kimi?"

Tseng nodded and looked down at his daughter, who was now sleeping peacefully in his arms, sucking her thumb once more. "We'll be okay."

And Elena had a feeling that he his words meant so much more. She turned and walked back to the women who had become her friends. Yuffie was teasing Shera about Cid. "Come on, fess up Shera, how did you tell Cid that you were pregnant the first time?"

"You are not going to believe how ridiculous it really was," said Shera with a smile.

…

…

…

…

…

…

Dunno if I accomplished the angst that I wanted, but since it's a baby fic, I went easy on them. Were the Turks believable here or have I gone too soft on them? I tried not to make Tseng so soft, since its obvious from CC that he's not, but I mean, if Vincent can get wrapped around his kid's finger, won't Tseng? Also, Reno and the things he does and says, did I accomplish my humor? I don't know if Sympathy pains are felt by someone who isn't the father, but work with me. So I hope this was to everyone's liking and Cid and Shera are up next, and there will be more of the men's POV. I have an idea of what I have in store for Cid, so it should be funny. Now the meanings of the kids names are these: Kimi—She who is without equal, Rowan—Rowan tree(not very creative, I know), Zack—God has remembered, and Sydney—wide meadow. I didn't really think of the meanings of their names when I started, but I think they kinda worked out, right?

I hope it was to everyone's liking and feel free to comment. I do ask for constructive criticism if you have it, I _do_ want to get better, just don't be rude about it. I mean, advice is better taken when you're nice and polite, is my opinion. So let me know how I did with this piece and I hope to have a new chapter sometime soon! Also, please ignore the errors that are obviously there? I will try to re-read the three chapters to fix whatever errors I find. So see you!

Joey

P.S. Sorry the chapter was so long, and those of you following "Turn The Page," will have to wait til' next week. Sorry, I got a busy weekend and this chapter took up most of my time! Also, to those of you who reviewed, thanks a bunch.


	4. Baby Highwind

………………………………

**Daddy Blues**

…………………………

**Baby Highwind**

………………………………

Once they were done eating, everyone did their share to clean up their section of the park and the women walked over to sit with the men, who were talking more easily now that they had more than a few drinks down. Yuffie crawled onto Vincent's lap and watched their son and the other children as they surrounded Reno, with the exception of Kimi, who was napping in Tseng's arms. Sydney was playing with his long ponytail while Rowan was wearing Reno's goggles, and little Zack was trying to climb his back.

"I think Reno would be a great babysitter," Yuffie said to Tifa and Shera, ignoring the look on their respective men's faces. "Now we know who to call when we want to go out alone," she said to Vincent.

Vincent's look could've melted the entirety of Icicle Town. "I think not," he said flatly. "I wouldn't leave our child in his hands if he were the last man on earth."

"Hey!" Reno exclaimed, letting out an 'oomph' when all three kids tackled him down onto the blanket they were sitting on and proceeded to climb over him. "Ah, a little help, Rude?"

"The children love _you_ Reno," Rude replied before taking a gulp from his beer.

"Well... I'm not loving the way your kid is pulling my hair, Valentine," Reno said with a wince, trying to get his hair out of the child's grip.

Yuffie smirked and tried to pry her son's hand from Reno's hair. "Come on kiddo, we don't pull hair," she reminded him. Once she was able to free Reno from her son's clutches, she picked the boy up and handed him over to Vincent, who usually took care of berating him, but she gave him a look when he smirked and merely shrugged. Hmm, she couldn't believe that he could be so childish when it came to the Turk.

"Come on, we're waiting to hear Highwind's story!" Reno called before Sydney jumped on his middle and knocked the air right out of him.

"My story is nobody's business!" Cid called, mysteriously falling backwards in his chair.

Yuffie whistled and inspected her fingernails, trying not to burst into laughter. Shera, who had been close by picked up a deadly looking mini-shuriken and held it up to her. "Lose something?" she asked with a smile.

Vincent gave Yuffie a look after noticing that the two back legs of the chair had been sliced off, causing the pilot to topple backwards. "What?" she asked innocently.

"Fucking brat!" yelled Cid, sitting up and rubbing his back.

"Cid!" Shera exclaimed, mortified that the children had heard the curse word. "The children!"

f"Don't worry about it Shera, Rowan hears Vincent cursing all the time," Yuffie said matter-of-factly. Everyone turned to look at Vincent and he just glared at Yuffie enough to nearly burn a hole through her head. "I'm kidding. He hears _me_ cursing all the time. I swear, I was a little surprised that his first word _wasn't _a curse word," she said with a grin.

Shera smiled and turned to Cid as he stood and smiled when Sydney walked over with her handful of flowers. Despite his rough exterior, her husband had turned out to be a sensitive husband and father, though he would rather poke himself in the eye with the Venus Gospel before admitting it. She turned to their friends and sighed. "Well, as you've heard, it all began in a hangar of the WRO…"

"I could've been permanently scarred," Reeve muttered, earning a glare from a certain pilot.

"When I told him I was pregnant, he fainted!"

"Goddammit Shera!" yelled Cid as Yuffie and Reno broke into loud guffaws and their other friends covered their laughs with coughs.

…………

_As she worked on a few formulas, Shera felt a smile pull at her lips when she noticed Cid working in the back room. A few weeks before, she could remember herself walking on shaky legs, straightening her lab coat as she stepped out from the back room of a WRO ship hangar. Her hair had been a little mussed and her glasses had been missing a leg. She'd been able to fix them herself, but right then she had been worried about looking presentable to her coworkers so that no one suspected about the activities she had engaged in with her husband. Not to mention that Reeve had nearly walked in on them, she thought with a blush._

_Sighing dreamily, Shera watched Cid as he stepped out, a greasy ship part in his gloved hand. He was sweating, smudged with oil, and smoking. Really now, he was the epitome of a caveman and with the manners of one to boot. But still she loved him more than she ever thought it was possible to love someone. Though their beginning had been rocky and she'd cried many tears for her failures and his attitude towards her, he had finally seen through her modest exterior and into the woman who wanted nothing more than to be happy and give his life to him._

_The sudden stench of Cid's cigarette hit her nose and her stomach roiled in protest. That was… strange… nothing of the like had happened before. She had grown accustomed to Cid smoking, and to make it more comfortable for her, he didn't smoke when she was in close proximity; except when he was working on his ship. Shera stood from her workbench and walked straight towards the restroom, nearly bowling Cid over._

"_What da hell? Watch where you're goin'!" he yelled. He almost expected her rushed apology, but she didn't even stop to berate him for yelling. He handed over the ship part to a passing engineer and then quickly followed Shera. He stood outside of the restroom, to give her _some_ privacy and waited. Cid made a face when he heard her retching from inside. "What the fuck? Did ya eat somethin' bad?" he asked, trying to mask his worry._

_The sound of a toilet flushing interrupted him, followed by the water running for a few minutes. Shera stepped out, looking faintly pale and managed a weak smile. "Sorry, captain. I think it was the smell of your cigarette," she murmured, rubbing her stomach as it still roiled._

_Cid pulled off his gloves and stuffed them into his pocket, then he touched her forehead and then cupped her cheeks, rubbing them gently. "Maybe you should see a doc," he said seriously._

_Shera shook her head. "I may specialize in engineering, captain, but I know my symptoms. Lately I have been more tired than usual, I can't stand some smells, and my breasts have been feeling sore," she said, hoping he caught the hint._

_Cid's eye twitched. "Shit, Shera, ya gotta know that you can't talk about the ladies while were at the job. It makes me wanna—"_

_Shera shook her head when the nausea returned and she ran towards the porcelain bowl. "Damn it, Sher…" he muttered, a little disgusted, but not willing to run off like some sissy boy._

"_I was trying to tell you," Shera said as she rinsed her mouth out once more. "Those are all symptoms of a possible pregnancy," she said, watching his reaction closely._

_Cid's mouth fell open in shock and he sputtered for a few seconds. "What the… fuck… what?" he asked._

_Shera smiled slightly and shook her head. "I'll have to get some blood tests done before we can know for sure. Don't look so elated before we even know if we _are_ pregnant," she said the her last sentence with a touch of sarcasm. Cid looked like a fish out of water, and she didn't even know if he'd be happy about a baby._

"_Well… what da hell are ya waiting for?" he snapped, grabbing her hand and nearly dragging her off. "We're goin' down to see one of Reeve's doctors so that we can know for sure!"_

…

_Cid was nearly eating his fingernails raw. His foot tapped, he stood to pace, he chewed on a cigarette until Shera started to look faintly ill again. "What? What's wrong?" he asked, moving towards her._

_Shera shook her head and held up her hands, trying to ward him off. "I can smell the cigarettes and they're making me nauseous," she said quickly._

_Cid cursed and stuffed it into his pocket, realizing that if Shera really was pregnant, maybe he'd have to… _quit_. He nearly pulled out his own hair, but was interrupted when a lab tech walked in and handed Shera a sealed off envelope. She opened it quickly and read it. Cid knew that she handed it over, he wouldn't be able to decipher all the medical crap, even when he understood numbers quite well. "And?" he asked her in annoyance._

_Her eyes were literally shining in her pretty face. "It's positive!" She looked up to see Cid's reaction, but all she heard was a loud thump. "Cid!" she exclaimed, running to his side when she realized that he was unconscious. "Come on, captain, I thought you were a big strong man," she muttered, slapping his cheek a little."_

_Cid groaned and rubbed his head as he came to. Had he fainted…? Naw, he was too manly to faint. He had simply _passed out. _He looked up to see Shera's beautiful face hovering over his. He smirked. "So there's a bun in the oven?"_

_Shera broke into sweet laughter and nodded. "Yes, there's a little bun in the oven," she said, leaning down to kiss him lightly on the lips._

"_Not a word of me _passin' out_ to anyone, much less the brat," he muttered._

"_Of course not," Shera assured him. "We're going to be parents!" she said in a high, happy voice._

_Cid chuckled and nodded. "It's about damn time."_

…………

"_Is it just me or are Vincent and Yuffie giving each other looks?" Shera asked Cid as he downed a gulp from his beer._

_His blue eyes narrowed and Shera could sense the thundercloud settling over her husband's head. "What," he stated flatly._

_Shera regretted saying anything, but she had been quite excited to see the silent gunman moving on. Yuffie was a wonderful girl who could melt even the coldest of icebergs. Cid was another example of how the diminutive ninja could get even the most stubborn of men to care for her. "Stop being so overprotective. Sometimes I think that you considered yourself a father already," she said with a smile._

_Cid cursed and glared at her. "Stop talking crazy, Shera. The brat is nothing but a nuisance," he muttered._

_Shera just nodded and offered no other comments. She smiled when she saw that Cid had started watching the ninja more carefully throughout the room. They were all enjoying their anniversary party and Shera felt happier than she remembered being in her life. She and Cid were celebrating another year together, they were having a baby, and they had all their friends close by to celebrate together._

_Cid sidled up to Yuffie as she was pouring herself a drink and gave her a careful look. "What's new with ya, brat?" he asked._

_Yuffie smiled slowly and gave him a strange look. "…Nothing," she murmured. "You?"_

"_Shera's pregnant," he blurted._

_Yuffie's eyes widened and she nearly spit out her drink, which she had only begun to sip. "What…?" she coughed. "Really?"_

_Cid nodded and smirked at her reaction. "Just don't tell no one. We were supposed to tell you all together."_

_Yuffie's expression softened and she smiled. "Aww… now I feel all special and shit!"_

_Cid grunted when he realized just how bad an influence he had been on the girl. "Yeah. Shera and me are happy that we have a brat on the way."_

_The ninja nodded. "Congratulations," she said, patting him on the back. _

"_Thanks," muttered Cid. Shera watched them from a distance and smiled to herself as they stood awkwardly for a moment and then Yuffie grinned before wrapping the pilot in a bear hug._

"_You're gonna be a great dad," Yuffie said, sniffling a little. "I'm sure of it."_

_Cid nodded and gave Yuffie a squeeze before releasing her. "Thanks brat."_

_They separated and Cid walked over to his wife, his fingers tracing over her still flat stomach. The doctor had said that pretty soon they would be able to see her stomach develop into the bump and after that, Shera would be able to feel the kid move. There was no describing how he was feeling at the moment. How much pride filled his chest at the thought that in a few months Shera would bring their child into the world. Though he didn't mind what the baby turned out to be, a big part of him was hoping that she had a boy, so that he would be able to pass on his knowledge on airships. Though if the baby was a girl, he supposed that she would learn to pilot anyway._

_After announcing and celebrating with their friends, everyone went to bed. Cid pulled off his shirt and sniffed it before throwing it into the hamper. Shera was sitting on their bed, brushing out her long, brown hair and with a dreamy expression on her face._

"_What're ya thinking?" Cid asked, sitting in front of her to pull off his boots._

_Her nose wrinkled delicately. "I'm thinking that you need a shower," she said with a laugh. She broke into giggles when Cid nearly tackled her back against the bed, though he was careful with her middle and the treasure within._

_He leaned in to kiss her gently and pulled back to run fingers through her soft hair. "Are you gonna tell me what you were thinkin'?" he asked her with a faint smile on his face._

_Shera reached up to run the tips over her fingers over his lips. "I was thinking that maybe if our baby is a girl… we can call her Sydney," she said with a giggle._

_Cid started at the sound of the name and then grinned slowly. "Shit, I don't wanna curse a baby girl with a name that sounds like mine."_

_Shera shook her head. "But it's not a curse!" she said quickly, sitting up. "I think it's a wonderful name for a girl. I just know that she'll be beautiful and that you'll love her with all your heart."_

"_In all this, why are you so sure that we're havin' a girl?" Cid asked her, eyes narrowed._

_Shera shook her head. "I'm not one hundred percent sure, but something inside me is telling me that our baby will be a girl."_

"_You wanna bet on that?" asked Cid._

_Her eyebrows rose in interest. "You've got yourself a deal, captain. What should we bet?"_

"_Hmm, well if you have a boy, you'll have to… take a month off of work and we'll go on vacation," he said._

"_A month off work?!" Shera exclaimed, not believing what he was saying. As far as she had known, Cid loved his job just as much as she loved her own. He would willingly put off doing his job for so long? She thought about it for a long moment and then sighed. They'd never been on a trip before, even their honeymoon had been rushed to a few days in Costa del Sol. His plan didn't seem like a bad idea. "Fine. But if I have a girl, you'll have to quit smoking for good."_

_Cid didn't know if he wanted to take the bet now. "You drive a hard bargain, Sher," he muttered._

"_I know," she said smartly. "Take it or leave it, captain."_

"_Mrs. Highwind, you've got yourself a deal," he muttered before kissing her._

…………

_A month and a half later, while visiting Tifa and Cloud, Cid had to endure listening to the women as they cooed over Shera's baby bump. Shit, what was the big deal about talking to her belly? He doubted the little larva heard anything yet, though Shera tried to convince him otherwise; he'd never been all that interested in biology after all. Math and science—especially things on space—had been all that had interested him. Sitting back with the men, he noticed Valentine's eyes on Yuffie as she rubbed Shera's stomach like some kind of crystal ball._

"_What's with ya, Valentine?" Cid asked him suspiciously._

_Vincent turned to him and raised an eyebrow lightly. "Nothing," he said with a small, secretive smile._

_Cloud focused his gaze on the gunman as well and raised his eyebrows when Vincent shrugged slightly, the move very much reminding him of Yuffie. "Is there… something we need to know?" he asked, his eyes darting from the ninja to the gunman._

_Yuffie, Tifa, and Shera approached them then. Yuffie settled her hands over Vincent's shoulders and smiled at their friends. "I guess this is a good a time as any," she said with a light shrug._

"_What is?" Barret asked, looking at them curiously._

_Tifa smiled and looked up from four month old Zack, a knowing smile on her face. She nodded at the young ninja and Yuffie let out a deep breath. "Uh… well, Vince and I… we're…"_

_Vincent was not intimidated by the looks he was getting from Cid and Barret. "Yuffie is pregnant," he said calmly._

"_WHAT?!" Both Cid and Barret yelled. Luckily, Tifa had been holding the baby close to her and had shielded Zack's ears from the noise._

"_You can't be pregnant, you're just a kid!" yelled Cid. "And what the hell... how come we didn't know that you and the vamp were an item?!"_

"_Yeah, what he said!" Barret spat. "And you!" he yelled, pointing at Vincent. "You took advantage of her. Are ya at least gonna marry her?"_

"_Yuffie and I have decided that for now we are happy with our arrangements," Vincent replied, glaring at the other men._

"_That's bullshit," muttered Cid when Shera gave him a look. "It ain't right, Sher. The brat is supposed to get married properly…" he trailed off. "When did you even... fuck, I don't wanna know!"_

__

_Tifa, Cloud, and Shera wisely kept silent about knowing that Vincent and Yuffie were together. After all, they had all agreed that Cid and Barret knowing about them would be a bad idea. _Yuffie shook her head. "I don't want to get married. I just want to be with Vincent, and our baby and I want all our friends to support that. If you don't, maybe Vince and I should leave," she said, grabbing his hand and pulling him a little.

"_Well, for what it's worth… congratulations," said Cloud, hoping to alleviate the tension. No such luck, even when Yuffie smiled and nodded._

_Cid glared at them before storming out of the bar, leaving Shera to see a rather dejected Yuffie get wrapped up in Vincent's arms. Tifa glared at Barret, and the big man apologized for overreacting because of that single look. "We're just worried 'bout ya," he said, calmer. "You're... together, an' I _am_ happy for ya."_

_"Thanks." Yuffie managed another smile and moved away from Vincent. "I'm gonna go talk to the old man," she said, her eyes suspiciously watery._

"_Are you sure?" Vincent asked her, trying to mask his worry at her getting her feelings hurt._

"_Yeah. If we don't settle this now, I don't think we ever will," she said before she was out the door. Yuffie caught up to him outside, as he was lighting up a cigarette. "You're gonna need to put that thing out," she said quietly._

_Cid cursed and threw the barely started stick onto the ground, stomping on it with more force than was necessary. "What do ya want?" he snapped._

"_What was that back in the bar?" she asked him quietly. "I knew you weren't going to be happy, but can't you at least fake it so that _I _can be happy?" she asked._

_Cid sighed and shook his head. "You wouldn't understand!" he snapped. Yuffie gave him a hurt look and turned to go. Cid cursed even worse than before, realizing that now he had to be considerate with the brat the same way he was with Shera unless he wanted her to end up in tears. He may have been an asshole with anyone else, but he'd always hated making a lady cry. "Wait," he called to her. Yuffie stopped but didn't turn. "I'm sorry."_

"_I'm listening," Yuffie said._

"_It's just that… shit… you're like a kid to me. I still imagine you like the snot-nosed sixteen year old we met back in the forest. Ya know? And… to find out that some man has gone and…" he grimaced. "…deflowered you, it's not something I'm going to be happy about!" Cid finally forced out._

_Yuffie sighed and smiled, turning to look at him. "Well, I hope you get happy soon. I want you to be around for my kid too," she said lightly._

_Cid nodded and ruffled her hair. "I'm gonna always be here for both of ya, kid."_

_Yuffie nodded and smiled. "Thanks old man," she said with an evil grin. "Come on and let's get back inside before Shera and Vincent start to think that we killed each other and they rush out here for nothing."_

_Cid nodded and followed her. He _hated_ being a doormat for pregnant women, but maybe Shera was right and he was a big ol' softy._

…………

"_Cid," Shera nearly purred into his ear._

_He cracked open an eye tiredly and groaned. "Sher… I'm tired," he said into his pillow._

"_I know… but I'm _not_," she stressed, rubbing his arm suggestively._

"_Come on, Shera! You've woken me up the last three nights for this. I'm not as young as I used to be!" he exasperated._

_He heard her breath hitch and sighed to himself, knowing that with her hormones she was about to start crying for the next two hours. If he didn't do something quickly, he'd be up far longer than he would've if he had just given her what she was asking for. He turned to face her quickly and kissed her, his tongue sweeping into her mouth._

"_Do you still find me attractive?" she asked meekly._

_Cid stopped and stared at her. "You'll be the most beautiful woman even when you're ninety," he said before kissing her again._

_Shera smiled and nodded, closing her eyes. Really, it wasn't her fault that her hormones were all over the place!_

…

_About an hour later, Cid stood out on the backyard porch and smoked in the dark. His eyes were blinking sleepily, but he had needed a smoke and wanted to make sure that Shera was out like a light once he returned to bed. He was dead tired and though he knew that Shera wasn't herself, he was getting frazzled. She had seriously woken him up the last few nights just to ask him for… some love._

_He guessed that he should've been happy that she and the brat were healthy, because when he thought of how he could've lost her when she had contracted Geostigma, it made him cherish all that he had with her now even more. The memories of her sick, of the black ooze just consuming her, it brought a tight, painful feeling to his chest. The fact that she was healthy and that she was giving him a child made his love for her rise to unmeasured heights, as unmanly as it sounded. That thought kept him in check when his patience wore thin._

"_Cid?"_

_He cringed slightly when he heard her calling from their bedroom window. "Out here," he said. He stomped out his cig and walked back into the house and to their bedroom._

_She was looking at him with big, watery eyes, her lip in a pout. "You don't love me anymore," she said with a rather loud sniff._

_Cid threw in a few breath mints and moved back into bed, taking her in his arms. "Of course I love ya. I just need some rest once in a while," he muttered with a faint smile._

"_I'm sorry," said Shera, her voice sounding sleepy._

"_Don't apologize. You're having a kid, your body is going through different changes and you have a right to act all… weird and shit," he said._

"_Okay," said Shera. "But… will you do something for me?"_

"_Anything if you'll just let me get _some _shuteye," he muttered, already on the verge of sleep._

_Shera smiled and knew she had him._

………

_It was hideous. With big, wide eyes, clad in nothing but what looked like a loincloth—which Shera insisted it _wasn't—_and he was supposed to hold it without the thing falling on its head onto the ground. Cid looked up when a giggle reached his ears and he saw that Shera was watching him closely. "What the fuck am I supposed to be doin'?" he asked with a scowl._

"_We're practicing changing the baby's diaper. Come on, Cid. Won't you even help me a little in that department once Sydney is born?" she asked him with a pout._

_Cid's eyes narrowed. "Seriously, do ya know something that I don't?" At her confused look, he elaborated. "Is our kid a girl and you haven't told me?"_

_Shera shrugged slightly. "I haven't wanted to know, but I tell you that I'm fairly certain we're having a girl. Prepare to quit smokin' honey," she said, imitating his voice with her last few words._

_He glared at her. "This is some stupid shit, Shera. I don't know why you roped me into comin' to this class. A baby is way different than some plastic, alien lookin' imitation," he muttered, looking around at the class they were standing around in. It made him sick to see the other men participating gladly._

_Shera smiled. "But you promised that you'd bring me here! Besides, I'm in the process of convincing Yuffie to come along. So you won't be the only one suffering because I'm sure she'll bring Vincent with her. Isn't it just cute how he can't deny her anything?" asked Shera with a dreamy smile._

"_Right," muttered Cid. It was pathetic. And he could say it because he was just as pathetic too._

_Shera removed the "dirty" diaper from the plastic baby's behind and had _it _powdered and in a clean one in record time. Then she proceeded to wrap the thing in something resembling a very neat burrito. Cid was impressed. "How did you learn that shit?"_

_She gave him a disapproving look at his language and smiled. "I used to baby-sit a lot when I was a teenager. I guess I just remembered how to do it now."_

_Cid smirked in amusement and stepped back when she offered the "baby" to him, wrapped and ready for a nap. "I'll be willing to help when the real one comes along. I ain't holding that thing you've got there," he muttered._

_Shera just sighed and pretended to cradle and rock the baby gently and above her ever growing stomach. "Oh, and Cid?"_

"_Yeah?"_

"_I expect you to be present for my baby shower so that you can see every single gift given to our baby," Shera said with a smile._

_Cid sighed in irritation. Like he'd said. Pathetic._

………

_It was weird seeing the ninja brat with an expanding stomach. He'd gotten used to all the bare middles in the years he had known her. She looked weird wearing a dress. He tried to seem interested for Shera's sake in all the baby stuff the neighborhood women and their old friends had brought in brightly wrapped gifts. The baby shower was in full swing and he had himself a living room filled with hormonal and a few pregnant women. They were all carrying on about the color of this, the style of that, and he just couldn't take all the chattering. It was like a henhouse._

_He couldn't tell how Vincent was sitting through it all. He motioned towards the kitchen and the leather clad man said something to Yuffie before stepping away from her chair and towards him. Cloud joined them after making sure that Zack was sleeping peacefully in his stroller, even with all the noise._

"_How can ya just sit there and take all the fuckin' noise?" asked Cid once they were in the kitchen and with fresh beers in their hands._

_Vincent shrugged. "I've been through worse."_

"_So have I," said Cloud, leaning against the kitchen counter. "So… you know what you're having yet?"_

_Cid shook his head. "Shera doesn't wanna know. I don't care, as long as the kid is healthy and normal," he muttered. "You goin' all soft yet, Valentine?" he asked with a smirk._

_Vincent just raised an eyebrow at him. "This is… my opportunity to make amends. If a child makes me soft, I would welcome it," he replied._

_Cid just smirked and nodded, turning to Cloud. "And you, Strife?"_

_Cloud sighed. "I like being a father. It's… it gives you a sense of accomplishment that nothing else does. Not even saving the world," he said with a tilt of his lips._

"_Shit… you're all a bunch of sissies," he said, walking back out into the living room when he heard chairs scraping and the women beginning to say their goodbyes. Many of the neighbors stayed to help clean away the trash so that Shera wouldn't have to do a thing and before long, the living room was near spotless. Only Tifa, Cloud, Yuffie, Vincent, Marlene, and Denzel remained then._

"_You didn't see all of the gifts," Shera said to Cid as he sat next to her._

"_Sher, I just wanted you to be the spotlight," he muttered, ignoring the looks he was getting from the other two men._

_Shera began to sniffle and he looked at them all in alarm. "You don't care about the baby!" she exclaimed before bursting into the tears._

_At the sight of her, Yuffie reacted in much the same way, sniffling and with big fat tears rolling down her face. Vincent glared at Cid and took a seat next to Yuffie, rubbing her back smoothly and trying to get her to calm down. "Why are you such a jerk, Cid?" Yuffie asked him tearfully._

_Cid looked at them all in bewilderment. "Well shit! I don't know I'd make ya both cry!" he exclaimed. "All the gifts look great, Sher, I just needed a little break from all the hens of the neighborhood. It wasn't because I don't care about our kid. Shit, I think I'd love her even if she turned out like the brat," he said, hitching a thumb towards Yuffie, who was still sniffling but listening intently too._

_Shera stared at him and then smiled, her nose red and her eyes puffy. "You made Yuffie cry," she said, giving the other woman an apologetic look._

_Cid looked at the ninja and sighed. "Sorry, brat."_

"_Fine, you're not _such_ a jerk," Yuffie said with a wink. She smiled brightly and then turned the sunny look to Vincent, who was rubbing her stomach gently._

"_How 'bout I go and get ya your favorite ice cream?" Cid asked Shera, kissing her knuckles._

_Shera's face brightened and she nodded. "Ooh! You can bring me a pizza and I think we have a can of sardines left in the pantry," she said excitedly._

_Cid tried not to gag, since he didn't know if it would set her—and consequently Yuffie—to tears again. "Fine," he said, standing and walking towards the front door._

"_Hey, Vince?" asked Yuffie._

"_The chili cheese fries?" asked the gunman as he stood. She nodded and squeezed his hand. "Any ice cream?"_

"_Rocky Road," she said as both men began to walk out the door._

_Tifa sat with them and smiled. "Wow. You two have them nice and trained."_

_Shera giggled and shushed her. "Don't let them hear you though!" she said as she and Yuffie high-fived each other. Cloud just shook his head to himself and was thankful that he had gotten through that phase already._

……

_Later that night, Shera was finally sleeping through the nights and was not waking him up nightly to get some _lovin' _anymore. She had been getting more and more tired and all she wanted to do was sleep. Cid was thankful for more hours of sleep himself, but on that particular night, after looking at the various tiny articles of clothing, it had finally hit him that there really was a tiny person growing inside of Shera's ever expanding stomach._

_Smirking, he moved down so that he was eyelevel with Shera's stomach and pressed his ear gently to it, wondering if he would be able to feel anything. Sighing to himself, he decided to do something he'd seen all the doormats that had gone to the birthing classes with them do. "I… don't know if ya can hear me, but I wanna let you know that your ma and I wanna meet you soon," he muttered._

_He slid a hand over a small bump and couldn't contain the feeling in his chest. "You'll be daddy's girl, 'cause I know that you're gonna be a girl. You'll be beautiful like your ma, but you'll love flying and space like me. Maybe _you _will be the first person in space," he said with a wide grin. "It don't matter though. If you go to space, or become a pilot, or even if you stick around on the ground and become someone who does good in the world. I'll love ya with all my rusty, black heart," Cid said quietly. _

_He looked up to Shera's sleeping face and was happy that she hadn't woken up to hear his sappy words. "Only for you and your ma would I give up my beloved smokes," he muttered, feeling a kick return as a response. Already a smartass and back talker. He was in for a wild ride. Turning off the lights, he laid back against the pillows, his hand still resting on the spot where his _daughter_ had kicked. _

_In the dark, he missed the knowing smile on Shera's face._

……

_Shera hadn't been able to resist and had stubbornly gone to the WRO with Cid for the afternoon. The baby wasn't due for another week, but she and Cid would remain in Edge for the birth and the following month while she recovered. Sitting in a comfortable chair, watching with a smile as Cid worked in his element, she couldn't help but feel happy. She felt heavy, tired, and she was ready to have the baby, but she was happy._

_Cid was yelling at someone from the altitude of one of _The Shera's _engines and she just rolled her eyes and stood with a bit of difficulty to rub at her aching back. "Cid? I'm going to check on—"_

"_No!" he yelled. "I agreed to let ya come with me with the condition that you wouldn't do _any _work," he called, glaring at her from a long altitude._

"_But I'm bored!" Shera nearly whined._

"_Too damn bad!" he called back._

_Shera sighed in irritation. She couldn't just sit around and do nothing for another hour! She let out a small gasp when she felt pain in her stomach. She breathed in deep and tried to relax her breathing to figure out if maybe she was having fake contractions. A couple of minutes later, she felt it once more. "Cid?"_

"_Goddammit Shera, I said no!" Cid yelled before he went back to the solder in his hand._

_Shera grit her teeth. "Goddammit Cid, I'm in labor!" she yelled right back._

"_What?!" he yelled, nearly falling out of the harness that was keeping him from a plunging death. "Fuck, are you sure?"_

"_Well captain, if the pain is any indication… yes I'm sure!" she snapped. She waited for Cid to come back down and glared at him. "Do you require any proof?" Shera asked him smartly._

_Cid gave her a critical look. "Stop bein' a smartass and let's go," he said, motioning towards a car that Reeve had provided for them. "Hangin' out with the brat isn't a good idea if you're gonna talk back and get all smart with me," he muttered._

_Shera just rolled her eyes._

"_And don't roll your eyes at me," Cid said._

………

"_What's takin' so fucking long?! We've been here for hours," Cid said, pacing and trying to avoid tearing out his hair._

_Shera watched him calmly from her seat on the bed and shook her head. "Sit down, Cid. I told you many times before that this is a long process," she replied, leaning back when a contraction moved in on her._

_Cid offered his hand and rode it out with her, worry cramping his gut when her face contorted in pain but she made no noise. "Fuck, Shera, you got no idea how proud I am of you at this moment," he muttered._

_Shera let out a long breath and leaned back against her pillows, smiling even through the pain. "I think I do," she said with a smile. "You don't have a rusty, black heart at all," she murmured, reaching up to touch his cheek._

_Cid flushed red when he realized that he had described himself that way the night he had talked to Shera's stomach. "Shit, why didn't you fuckin' tell me you were awake?" he asked in annoyance. "That was a private conversation!"_

_She smiled and rubbed her hardened stomach. "Don't feel bad. It has to be one of the sweetest things you've ever said and done," said Shera as she brought his knuckles to her lips._

_Cid shook his head incredulously. "What the fuck did I ever do to deserve ya?" he asked, smoothing her sweat matted hair away from her face._

"_You're a good man," Shera assured him, holding his blue gaze and admiring just how handsome he truly was, even with his rough exterior. "I ask myself what _I _did to deserve _you_," she said with a bright smile. The smile wilted when a contraction hit her again. From then, it all progressed in near slow motion for Cid as he watched the doctor come in and examine Shera until she was well and truly ready. The labor stretched on for hours until he had missed another night of sleep._

_He was beyond stressed since it was all nearly one continuous pain for her, but Shera continued to assure him that it meant that the baby was ready to come and that it was a natural process in labor. Still, it looked like it hurt like a bitch and he didn't know whether he'd want her to _ever_ go through it again. Then just as suddenly he found himself standing in a different room, holding Shera's hand as her doctor told her to push, that the baby was… crowning._

"_Fuck," he muttered, not being able to avert his gaze as he watched the head coming. "Sher… I think I'm gonna pass out again!" he ground out._

"_It's childbirth, captain," she replied with a smile. "Most women consider this a beautiful part of life. And I think I'm one of them."_

_Cid turned back to see and his eyes nearly bugged out of his head when he saw the baby finally come out completely. "Shit!" he yelled, paling._

"_It's a girl!" the doctor said with a wide smile. "She's healthy and beautiful."_

_Cid couldn't take his eyes off of the red, gooey, screaming thing as the doctor cut the umbilical chord and then swabbed at her mouth. "I'm gonna give up my fuckin' smokes," he said faintly, watching as a nurse set the baby on Shera's chest._

_Shera was crying silently, carefully examining what she could of the newborn. She would be blonde, just like her father, she realized. "Isn't she beautiful?" she asked Cid, looking up and into his eyes._

_They mirrored the look of adoration in hers, and Cid nodded, swallowing hard. "My girls," he muttered, kissing Shera and then the cleanest spot on his daughter's forehead. "Shit, now I gotta worry about the both of ya curling me around your fingers," he said, grinning widely when he saw the baby open her eyes. He caught a sliver of blue and grinned even more broadly. "I gotta go tell the gang. Yuffie and Tifa were worried," he said to Shera._

"_In a little bit." She smiled, tears of happiness squeezing out of her eyes. "I'm sure she'll love the stars and the skies, just like you," she said gently._

_Cid nodded and leaned in to kiss her. "Yeah, I'll teach her to fly before she walks," he said with a happy chuckle. His life couldn't be more complete._

…………

"Aww!" Yuffie crowed, squeezing Vincent around the neck and nearly cutting off his air supply.

"Yuffie," Vincent warned.

"Sorry!" she exclaimed, easing up.

"You were saying about going soft?" Reeve asked smartly.

"Meh, she's my princess. I'll make no excuses," Cid muttered, picking up Sydney and throwing her into the air before catching her safely.

"I still say Vince was the one who suffered the most," Yuffie said.

"Are you kidding?" Tifa interrupted. "Cloud had to endure my mood swings _and_ my whole nesting episode."

"Well, Cid had to suffer through all those maternity classes," said Shera thoughtfully.

"So did Vince!" Yuffie exclaimed.

"Why don't we just call it a draw and leave things how they are?" Tifa offered, ever the peaceful one.

"Hey!" yelled Reno. "I had sympathy pains and I wasn't even the father!"

Elena broke into snickers and Tseng just smirked. The women looked at him and then shrugged. "Fine… you win," said Yuffie as they all broke into laughter.

"Why don't we just call it a draw and say that they all suffered their own share in each of our pregnancies?" Shera asked with a smile.

"Alright," Tifa conceded, taking Zack into her arms when he asked to be picked up. "They did suffer in their own ways. Maybe in the future, men getting pregnant _would_ be a good idea," she said with an evil smirk directed towards her husband.

Cloud cringed and shook his head. "I think I'd rather defend the earth one more time," he muttered.

"That's a horrible thing to say!" Tifa said. Cloud just shrugged.

"I'd go through it again, if it brought me another kid that looks like my Sher," said Cid, ignoring Yuffie's expected teasing.

Shera sighed and smiled happily. "I'm glad you think that Cid," she started.

Cid nodded. "Why is it so shocking?"

Shera walked over to kiss his cheek. "It's not. It just makes me happy to know that you'd go through it again, because you _will."_

"Huh?" he asked unintelligently.

"I'm pregnant," she said with a grin.

"What?!"

"Are you gonna faint again, old man?" Yuffie teased.

"You mean that?" Cid asked, ignoring Yuffie and staring right at his wife.

Shera nodded. "Yes. In about eight months we'll possibly have a baby boy," she said and winked. "I've got a feeling."

Cid hugged her around the shoulders and then kissed her forehead. "Damn it, Sher. You've got no idea how happy I am." He glared at Yuffie. "Not a word from you, brat." He took Shera off to the side and examined her closely. "Are you all right?"

She smiled at the man that she loved with all her heart. It gave her butterflies to her stomach when she saw just how similar Sydney's gaze was to Cid's. "I'm perfect."

Cid chuckled and nodded, placing a hand on her stomach. "We'll be good, Sher, but you gotta promise me one thing." She nodded curiously. "Promise that this'll be the last brat?"

Shera laughed out loud and nodded. "As you wish, captain. Besides, I think I'm done too," she said with a grin. "You'll have your hands full with teaching two kids how to fly, I think."

"Yeah," Cid muttered, wrapping an arm around her neck and pulling her into a rough kiss. "Yeah, I got it all."

Yuffie just smiled and held her son as they all took a shot back—with the exception of Shera, of course—to celebrate the news once Cid relinquished his hold on his wife.

"Hmm… this has been a really enlightening day, but I need to get going," Reeve said as he stood.

"Spoilsport!" Yuffie called.

"Duty calls," he said with a shrug, bidding everyone goodbye and thanking them for a good time. Reno, Rude, Barret, Elmyra, and the children left next, and the couples separated to take walks once they had left their sections clean.

"We must get going as well," Tseng said, standing and holding out his hand to Elena.

Tifa and Yuffie approached them. "It was nice that you guys came out to spend time with us. I'm sure that it's the best way we can work towards peace," said Tifa.

Yuffie nodded. "Don't be strangers. I'm sure Kimi would love it if she could hang out with kids her age."

"Thank you," Elena said with a smile. Tseng nodded and began to guide her away.

Tseng and Elena took a walk down the path that circled the park and then took them back towards the parking where his car was located. Their pace slowed as the sun began to set. "Did you have a good time?" she asked almost hesitantly.

Tseng nodded once. "It was… interesting. I didn't know that pregnancy was such a chaotic time in the lives of a woman _and _a man."

Elena smiled and nodded. "It's different. It changes a woman's life and body completely," she said calmly.

"I can see that," he commented, eyeing her carefully and slowly from head to toe. Pregnancy had filled her in all the right places and she had never looked as beautiful as she did then.

Elena tried not to blush since it was ridiculous; they were lovers for goodness sake! Though they hadn't exactly figured out where they would go as a couple in the future, that hadn't stopped them from getting to know each other even more intimately. "If there's one thing above others that I can admire about AVALANCHE it's that they always put the safety and health of their children first," she said quietly.

"It will be no different with you and me," Tseng replied, looking down at Kimi, who was still sound asleep in his arms. "It's a new era, Elena. We… don't live in the same world where we grew up. ShinRa isn't destroying the planet, and asking us to get rid of possibly innocent people. Kimi can grow up healthy and without the worries and shadows that we had in our lives," he said seriously.

Elena nodded and smiled. "I want our daughter to be happy."

"As do I," Tseng assured her. He looked at Elena and reached over to tuck a few blonde strands behind her ear. "I want _you _to be happy as well."

"I think that if you keep being the way you are, I will be."

"It's not enough," Tseng said, stopping her. "I am trying my very best to be a man worthy of you."

His words touched her heart and Elena shook her head. "I admire you for it. As long as you're here for our daughter and me, I can't ask for anything more." She leaned forward and brushed her lips against his. "I know we can be happy with effort and time."

Tseng nodded and allowed a small smile to grace his features. If there was one person who would be able to break through his thick wall of ice, it was Elena, and he knew he was willing to let her get into his heart. She and their daughter meant more to him than his own life, and he was thankful to have them.

…

"Don't put that in your mouth, Zack."

Tifa smiled as she began to fold up the thick blanket that she had brought from home for the children. "I thought he had grown out of that," she commented.

Cloud watched his son and shook his head. "Do you have any idea how many times I said that to the real Zack? It made me feel like his mom sometimes," he muttered. Zack ran into his arms and hugged him around the neck. Cloud could barely remember his mother, but whenever Tifa and little Zack hugged him, a warm feeling filled his stomach and made him think of her.

Tifa giggled and pulled the grass blades from her son's hand, throwing them a distance away. She kneeled in front of them and met Cloud's eyes, so blue and clear. "Are you happy?"

Instead of replying right away, Cloud leaned forward and kissed her, not minding that Vincent and Yuffie were nearby. Even squeezing Zack between them didn't stop him. "What do you think?" he asked when she drew away a little.

Tifa smiled and to Cloud it looked like the sun rising. "I'm happy too," she said, cupping his cheek gently.

Cloud nodded, leaning his forehead against hers. "You were the only person who kept me going, who let me see that I had a chance to be happy too," he said quietly.

"I don't know what my life would be like if I hadn't had you or Zack in it," she said, smiling when Zack let out an annoyed sound and wrestled himself out of the circle they had created. "I wouldn't be so surprised if he picked up your sword and automatically knew how to use it," she said, watching him walk off as if he were an adult.

Cloud smirked and shook his head. "If we've done things right, he'll never have to know about fighting and hurt," he said quietly, getting to his feet and pulling her with him. "Nor will we allow him to hurt the girl he'll eventually fall in love with," he said, holding her around the waist.

Tifa leaned in to kiss his cheek and smiled when his eyes fluttered closed. "No one is that perfect Cloud. All we can do is raise him to be the best man he can be. If he's anything like you, he'll be a wonderful person."

Cloud just shook his head and couldn't understand how Tifa could love him so much when a part of him still thought that he didn't deserve her. "Stay with me forever?" he murmured against her ear.

"I'll try," Tifa replied, running her fingers through his soft hair. Of course she would try.

…

"So sappy," Yuffie murmured as she watched their friends having a moment. A quiet grunt came from behind her, but he offered no comment.

Vincent and Yuffie sat in a low tree branch, Rowan, Sydney, and Zack were playing nearby in the grass. "He'll be one gorgeous guy when he grows up," she commented, leaning back against Vincent's chest.

He merely grunted in response. "Do you…" he trailed off.

Yuffie felt his arms tighten around her and turned to look at him. "Don't ever hesitate to tell me anything, Vince," she said with an honest look.

"Do you think it's time to have more?"

"More kids?" Yuffie asked with wide eyes.

Vincent smirked and shook his head. "More in our lives. A deeper relationship," he offered.

"You mean aside from being friends, lovers, living together, and being parents?" Yuffie asked with a mischievous grin. He inclined his head and she shrugged. "I wouldn't mind, but it's not something that I think is required."

"Good," said Vincent, reaching into his pocket and then moving his hand in front of her so that she could see it and open it. She did so and let out a shriek when she saw that it was a beautiful engagement ring, set in silver and with a green stone in the middle, surrounded in diamonds.

"What is that?!" she asked, turning to look at him with wide eyes.

"Some people would call it an engagement ring," he deadpanned.

Yuffie whirled around in his arms and threw herself at him. The next thing she knew, they were falling headfirst down to the ground, and she let out a loud grunt as Vincent righted them at the last moment and they landed on their feet. Really, how could Vincent pull off looking graceful after falling out of a tree?

"Will you marry me?" he asked her with a smile curling at his lips.

Yuffie jumped up and down excitedly, waiting until he had slipped the ring onto her finger before she ran off and gave the three children a huge bear hug. They all toppled to the grass in giggles and Yuffie hugged Rowan tightly to her, kissing his forehead. "I guess I have to say yes to your dad now, huh? He bought a ring after all," she said, giggling more.

"You never did give me your answer," Vincent said calmly.

"Well, yes! Of course!" she said, getting to her feet and dusting off the tots. "I'm getting married!" Yuffie screamed at the top of her lungs.

Vincent just watched her with a smirk and didn't resist when Yuffie brought their son over and they engulfed him in a hug. As his arms circled them, he felt his eyes close in sensation. It was in a man's nature to complain, but even with all the aches and pains he had suffered along with Yuffie, he knew that he wouldn't have missed it for the world.

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Dunno how this was for an ending, but I do hope that it was to everyone's liking. It took me a while, but since a couple of people asked me about this final chapter, I finally got the inspiration to write it. I hope I didn't kill Cid or Shera's character and I really went easy on the whole "writing" slang thing, since I just can't do it that much without it giving me a headache. I want to thank those of you who reviewed a thousand years ago and just recently. I appreciate all the support I got for this story, since I don't know _that_ much about pregnancies. I hope everyone has a great week and I will try to update other fics soon. See you all around!

Joey


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